Summer Surprise
by Claudia Lily Wayne
Summary: Lily Evans is expecting to have an ordinary summer before her last year at Hogwarts. Little does she know that her summer will be anything but normal when she 'accidentally' tells Petunia that her boyfriend is James Potter and said boyfriend shows up at her house and is now living with her for the summer.
1. The Wake-up call

**Summer Surprise**

**The Wake-up Call**

* * *

Rrrriiiinnngg Rrrriiiinnngg

_Hmph. Maybe It'll stop on its own and I can go back to sleep._

Rrrriiiinnngg Rrrriiiinnngg

Rrrriiiinnngg Rrrriiiinnngg

_Never mind. Bad Idea. I'll just have to shut it._

"BLOODY OW!" I scream and and sit up while staring at the now rapidly forming bruise on my palm.

I, Lily Marie Evans, 17 years old, attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, AM NOT a morning person! And since I've always made sure everyone knows that fact...

"WHO ON EARTH PUT THIS MONSTER OF AN ALARM CLOCK IN MY ROOM?" I bellow out loud, making sure the neighbors hear me because no one has a right to sleep while I have been woken so cruelly.

_Knock! Knock!_

"WHAT?" I scream at whoever is outside my room.

The door opens and reveals my horse-like sister, Petunia, who looks like she has just swallowed something extremely bitter. Petunia Evans is the most control-freak, annoying, rude, and thick-headed sister one could have.

I mean, _seriously_, who breaks off their friendship with the most smart, charming, funny, caring, incredibly talented….S_orry, got a bit carried away there_. Anyway, as I was saying, who in their right minds would break off their friendship with a lovely sister as me just because they found out that said sister was a talented witch?.

Petunia crosses her arms across her chest and look down at me like dirt under shoes. She wrinkles her nose - _she doesn't know it makes her look like a horse even more - _and says, "God, Lily. Will you stop screaming? I am sure the entire street has heard you by now."

I narrow my eyes at her suspiciously and ask in a low voice, "You put this bloody alarm clock in here, didn't you?"

"So what if I did?"

"_Petunia!"_

"WHAT? Lily, its 8 in the morning and everyone else is up. Why the hell shouldn't you be?"

"EIGHT?" I splutter with disbelief, "Why did you wake me up at eight?"

Petunia smirks at me evilly and says, "Mum asked me to wake you up, so I did."

I feel my blood boiling inside me and stare at her incredulously. It is bad enough that I have to wake up at seven every morning when I am at Hogwarts. But having to wake up at any time before eleven at my own house is something I won't tolerate.

_I mean its summer, for Merlin's sake! Why wake up so early?_

"_Mum _asked you put this bleeding alarm clock in my room? Are you _serious?_" I ask her shrilly.

"Not directly, no. She just asked me to wake you up. It's better to let the alarm-clock do the job rather than getting kicked by your fat legs", Petunia says with an evil smirk on her face.

"Well, its doing nothing other ruining my morning! And I _do not _have fat legs! It's YOU who looks malnourished." I shout shrilly.

"You're so rude in the morning, you know that right?" Petunia says calmly.

I don't know why, but her saying this makes me feel a little guilty for shouting. _Gah! I'm too nice for my own good...__  
_

"Well you're the reason for it," I say a bit more gently.

"Let me tell you something, _freak - _I AM NOT dying to see your face early in the morning everyday." Petunia says while going slightly red in the face.

_There you go. That's what you get for being gentle. Ugh. My headache, bruised palm and boiling anger are not helping my frustration._

"Why did you wake me up then?" I ask with an attempt to keep my voice steady.

"'Cause mum asked me to. Didn't I tell you that already? You have a horrible memory."

I bite my lip so hard to control my anger that moments later, I feel blood in my mouth. _Great, lets add that to the list of reasons for why this is turning out to be a horrible morning._

"Listen Tuney, just tell me why MUM wanted to wake me up." I ask her, resisting the urge of whipping out my wand and hexing her off the planet.

"'Cause she is going to one of her kitty-parties and Dad's not home. She wants us both to be up while she is gone so that we can take care of the house. And DO NOT call me Tuney...I am not 10 anymore, Lily!" Petunia says, stomping her foot. _Merlin, what a child..._

"Petunia? Is Lily up, honey?" Mum calls from the kitchen, "I have to leave now. Lily, are you up?"

"Yeah Mum, you go on" I reply lazily.

After hearing the front door close shut, Petunia glares at me one last time before turning on her heels and stomping out of my room, haughtily. I snort at her retreating figure. _I wasn't craving your presence either, you know!_

Slowly and grumpily, I rise from my bed and enter the bathroom - _But not before taking revenge on the alarm clock by breaking it._ _That serves you right you little monster!_

The reflection I find in the mirror requires everything I have to not scream at. My back-length crimson hair looks like a bundle of rope that has been knotted wherever possible and then left on my head. My face looks as pale as porcelain and my _hideous _alien green eyes are still groggy with sleep.

_Splendid, I look like a five foot six inch poodle with red hair, sleepy mind and a bad temper. Just great! Exactly what I need right now to make me feel better._

People often argue with me that I am a gorgeous girl with everything a guy wants and a girl envies. Well, they obviously don't see me properly. In the name of Merlin, which girl that has her genetics attacked by Christmas looks gorgeous? Not me.

People also say that my green eyes are entrancing and my red hair is captivating and all that rubbish. _Ha! As if!_ My eyes are like ones of an alien and my hair looks like one of a poodle's, just red. End of story. No more discussion.

I release a huge sigh and step into the shower after brushing my teeth. After scrubbing my body for half an hour, excluding the bruised palm, I wash my hair with my lilac-scented shampoo for another 15 minutes to get rid of the jungle of knots in my hair. After wrapping myself in a towel, I magically dry my hair - _thank Merlin I can use magic outside school now - _and carefully brush my hair and tie it into a high and neat ponytail.

Stepping out of the bathroom, I make my way across the hall to get to my room. After opening the wardrobe and scanning it quickly, I fish out a pair of shorts and one of my dad's old t-shirts_ - loose, baggy and comfortable. Perfect! - _before putting them on.

After I check myself in the mirror and apply very light make-up so that my abnormal red eyelashes turn black, I skip down the stairs, acutely aware of the fact that my shirt is hiding my denim shorts, making it look like I am not wearing anything under it. _Ah!_ _Who gives a damn? It's not as if someone's gonna barge in the house right?_

As I notice the greenish-blue bruise in my palm while pouring my cereal, I make a mental note to apply first-aid later and make sure that the world is free from alarm clocks when I am an adult who is capable of bringing a change to the world. I carry my bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice to the counter and peacefully enjoy my breakfast…

_Until…_

"Lily, I am going to meet Vernon at his house and won't be back till evening. Mum will return by afternoon though. And why the hell are you wearing THAT? It makes you look half-naked!" says Petunia, wrinkling her nose in distaste.

I roll my eyes at her before setting down my glass of juice and replying, "No one's here other than us, Petunia. Who cares what I wear? Anyway it's none of your business what I - "

_Wait..what did she say before that? She can't just leave the house to go and have fun with the Walrus. Though I doubt they know what fun is. But that's beside the point…_

"No, wait wait wait. What else did you say? How can you just leave? I thought you said mum wants us _both _to take care of the house?" I say with disbelief in my voice.

"Oh c'mon, Lily, just because you don't have any boyfriend, and will never have, may I add, doesn't mean no one else is supposed to enjoy their time." Petunia says with an impatient expression on her face.

"What makes you think I don't have a boyfriend?" I ask her crossing my arms and getting up from the chair.

_Okaaaay...so I **don't **have a boyfriend. But Petunia doesn't know that so how can she just assume, right?_

"Really? do you have one then?" She asks with wide eyes as if she couldn't believe the fact that I could possibly have a boyfriend.

_Who does she think I am? Her Walrus boyfriend's female version? 'course I can have a boyfriend._

"Yeah I do" I say without realizing what I am doing, "In fact, practically the whole female population of our school swoons over him."

As soon as the words are out of my mouth, the image of two blokes instantly pop into my head without warning;

1. Sirius 'Ladies man' Black, _as he likes to call himself,_ has long and perfect hair that falls over his eyes, giving him a bad-boy look. Girls practically worship the ground he walks on. I won't deny that he is extraordinarily hot and cute and that his grey, mysterious eyes give him a mischievous look to go with his attitude. But attitude; that's _exactly _the problem. He is play boy number one and is known for _not _having a girlfriend that lasts more than two weeks. Not to mention that his 'I-am-so-great-and-mighty-nature' doesn't really put him on a high level of respect in my mind. Pompous, Prankster, Pig-headed prat who helps his best-mate ruin the life of yours truly. That's who Sirius Black is.

_Ah...that brings me to the next person on my list - _

2. James 'Arrogant' Potter, _as **I** like to call him,_ has an infuriating mop of unruly hair that never knows how to lie flat_. _He has pair of hazel eyes that are - _U__gh, Fine! I'll admit it - _gorgeousanddreamy that are hidden under wire-rimmed glasses. I'll _also _admit that he is not that bad-looking...Oh, alright! he's pretty cute. _But the day I admit that publicly will never come 'cause I'll be dead. _I don't even know where to start with his problems - he's an arrogant, conceited, annoying toerag who has an ego the size of an ocean. The boy is a complete git who doesn't get the simple message that a girl _doesn't want to go out with him. _Now that I'm finally on the point, I'll tell you the rest of it as well; James Potter has been chasing after me for the past four years and won't bloody get the message that I could never go out with a prick like him. I mean, why should I? I haven't had a boyfriend since third year that lasted more than a week. I know, I know - It's worse than Black's record. But the only reason I haven't had one is because of James Bloody Potter. You see, he thinks that it's oh-so-amusing to hunt down and prank the life out of anyone who dares to make a move on me other than him. So please excuse me while I _don't _fall at his feet like the other bints at Hogwarts.

_Anyway, back to the matter at hand - I'd rather die than date either one of those conceited prats. But Petunia doesn't need to know that._

"God Lily, you're such a liar," says Petunia, her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed tightly.

"And why would you say that?" I ask with a raised eyebrow.

"Because…because you never told us about him and you never brought him home."

_Shit...she can actually think._

"Well, we recently got together and I didn't get time to tell as I just came yesterday." I say while internally praising myself for my ability to lie smoothly.

"Well...then, what's his name?"

_Fuck. Okay, Lily...don't panic. There are thousands of blokes at Hogwarts. Just give her any name...it's not like she's gonna find out anyway._

"James Potter." I say before my brain even processes what my mouth utters.

_Holy Crap. So much for going with **any **name. _

* * *

**To be continued...**

**AN_ -_**Hey guys...this is my first fanfic so I am hoping that everyone can write reviews and tell me how to improve my writing. I will keep updating every chance I get and I am gonna try and make the story as interesting as possible. Thanks. Love you guys

Claudia


	2. The Unexpected Visitor

**Summer Surprise**

**The Unexpected Visitor**

* * *

_Shit…did I just say what I think I said?_

"James Potter? What sort of a name is Potter? He is also a _freak, _isn't he?" Petunia asks, scrunching up her nose in distaste.

_Yup. I **definitely **__said that. Damn...__I blame it on my stupid brain for thinking about him and on my stupid mouth for saying what I was thinking about!_

"Yes, Petunia. He is indeed a _wizard, _if that's what you mean." I say calmly.

"Shut up! How many times do I have to tell you to not use such _abnormal _words?", Petunia shrieks. I simply sigh at her hysterical behavior, long used to such reactions.

After Petunia considerably cools down after her rant, - _which I conveniently tuned out, by the way - _I notice her expression change from anger to suspicion before an evil smirk spreads across her face, making me feel uncharacteristically uncomfortable. _This doesn't feel good..._

"I know you're lying, Lily. I know there is no such person. You just made it all up, didn't you?" Petunia asks.

_Bloody hell; she's thicker than I thought. _"WHAT? Why on earth would I do that? Of course he's not a figment of my imagination." I scoff at her.

"Whatever. I don't believe it for a second since I have never seen him and never will…do you know why, Lily?" Petunia asks with a gleam in her eyes.

"Why?", I ask, rolling my eyes at her ridiculous theory.

Petunia places her bony hands on her hips before saying, "Because he doesn't exist. I don't blame _him _though, because no one can ever think about dating you. But since there _is _no _he_, there is no point in having this conversation. So, goodbye."

With that said, Petunia leaves the house, closing the front door with a _slam. _I stand there, gaping at the spot she disappeared from for a few seconds. Anger boils inside me as I realize just how lowly she thinks of me. _She didn't believe me **just** because she thinks I __**can't**__ have a boyfriend._

Fuming, I stomp into the living room while grabbing a bucket of ice-cream from the kitchen on my way. As I plop onto the couch and turn on the television, I replay the events in my mind.

_She thinks Potter is just a figment who I made up just to prove her wrong. If only that was true…! But he is not a figment of my imagination. I may have lied about him being my boyfriend but I would never make someone up because I have no guy in my life. __Just **how **desperate does she think I am? Agreed that I am desperate enough to say the James Potter is my boyfriend - and that's saying something - but it was only a slip of tongue. It doesn't mean I am **so **freaking lonely that I would make up characters to keep myself entertained! That's outrageous!__ UGGHH. I hate her._

I frown and stare at the television, not really seeing it, and gobble down the strawberry ice-cream with vigor. _What? I like eating. **Especially **when i am in a foul mood._

* * *

Dong! Dong!

As the doorbell rings from across the hall, I glance at the clock to check the time. _1:00 pm. Melin, how long have I been sitting here?_

"Well I guess Mum's here," I say aloud as I walk to the front door, across the hall.

When I open the door, I am not prepared for what or _who _I see there; Messy black hair, wire-rimmed glasses in front of a pair of hazel-colored eyes, and an ever-present smirk on the face of the one and only James Potter.

Not being able to believe my eyes, I blink several times, hoping to rid myself of imaginary James Potters. When that method fails to bring me out of my stupor, I even pinch myself to be reassured that it isn't a dream. _A nightmare more likely. _I stand frozen on my spot for god-knows-how-long before Potter decides to grace me with his voice - _I hope you noted the sarcasm in that._

"Hey, Evans!" says Potter while running his hand through his hair. _I swear to Merlin, he does it on purpose to annoy me._

As he leans against the door frame with his arms crossed in front of his chest, I can't help but notice the how much he has grown over the years. His six feet two inch height, along with his tan skin and toned body is the main reason that many girls at Hogwarts throw themselves at his feet. _Except me, of course. _Still, as I watch his muscles tighten as he crosses his arms, my teenage hormones can't help but admire how hot he is. _Whoa…hold on a second. What is wrong with me? It's Potter for Merlin's sake. Nothing is good about him. Do you hear me stupid brain? __**Nothing**__._

"P-p-potter?" I stammer disbelievingly.

"Yes, Evans?"

"What are you doing here?", my voice barely above a whisper as I stand frozen on the spot.

"I am here to see you, silly!"

_Silly? Did he just call me __**silly?**__If anyone here is silly, its him! Who does he think he is? How can he just show up whenever he wants to? This is __**not **__happening to me…_

"Oh, so I am silly, am I?" I ask in disbelief. "In case you haven't noticed Potter, I am not the one standing outside _your _doorstep because I just felt like it. Which I will _never _feel like doing, mind you." I add quickly seeing his smirk gradually spreading across his face.

"Oh Lily, you are _so _cute when you pretend to be angry. Now aren't you gonna invite me in your house?" Potter asks.

Before my slow and stupid brain can even process what happened, Potter side-steps me and enters the house with me still standing at the door step with my mouth agape.

_Holy crap!_

"I am _not _pretending to be angry and you can't just barge in here without any warning!" I scream at him. Then, realizing my choice of words, I remember about what I thought earlier and quickly glance down at my outfit. Immediately, a blush creeps onto my face as I become aware that I indeed look half naked with the baggy shirt just reaching mid-thigh.

Potter slightly frowns at by abrupt stop of speech and follows my line of sight to glance at my outfit as well. I don't miss the growing smirk and gleam in his eyes as he looks up at my face again. _Bloody perverted git. _

"Nice outfit, Red"

"_Don't _call me 'Red', Potter. Now tell me what the hell you're doing here. Or better yet, just leave", I say, glaring at him

"Well you see, Evans" starts Potter, ignoring the last half of my comment, "I missed seeing you for so long that I decided to pay you a visit."

I snort at his lame excuse and say, "Well _you _see, Potter, we just left Hogwarts the day before yesterday…so that hardly counts as _long_."

"48 hours, Lily…that's a lot for me." Says Potter with feigned innocence. _It doesn't suit him. He can never be innocent._

"Well, let me tell you that I am _honored _at being given so much importance by _the _James Potter" I say with sarcasm dripping from my voice.

"Really?" he asks hopefully.

_Merlin, how thick could you get? You would think that the topper of almost every class and biggest prankster at Hogwarts would at least have enough sense to recognize a sarcastic comment._

I slightly lift my shirt and watch as Potter's eyes widen with anticipation and a smile stretches across his face. _Dream on._ I watch with satisfaction as his smile disappears to be replaced by worry as I pull out my wand from the pocket of my shorts.

He nervously runs a hand through his hair – _ugh – _and says, "Uh, look Evans, maybe we can talk this through"

"There will be no talking, Potter. Either you leave this instant or be ready to be hexed into next week."

"Listen, Lily. Just calm down", he says, putting his hands in front of him in a 'I-surrender' sort of position.

_Too bad...h__e lost his chance to live._

"When you die, remember that this was what you chose for yourself" I say before raising my wand and point it at him.

As the words of the hex start forming on my lips, Potter's eyes widen further before he lunges at me and we both fall on the floor, him on top of me. _What on earth is he doing?_

"What on earth are you going?" I ask while trying to wriggle out from underneath him.

But as soon as I look up at his face, I suddenly become aware of the close proximity between us; his face mere inches away from mine. As his hazel-eyes stare into my _alien green ones_, I lose myself into the warm and welcome feeling his eyes radiate. _No, no, no this is not happening. _

I snap out of my trance and quickly and loudly say, "Potter, get off of me".

As soon as the glaze leaves his eyes, he snaps out of his trance just like me but doesn't say anything. Then as we both just start following the unsaid agreement to sit up straight, someone from my left says…

"Lily, what's going on here?"

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN: **There you go…finished another chapter today. Thank you everyone who has viewed my story and I hope that I will get some reviews and feedback from you guys. I will put up the next chapter as soon as I can.

Claudia


	3. The Potter Invasion

**Summer Surprise**

**The Potter Invasion**

* * *

_I just cannot believe my luck today. Maybe I shouldn't have left bed at all. Yeah…that's what I should have done._

I apprehensively turn my head to the left to see my mum _and _Petunia standing near the entrance, both with looks of disbelief and astonishment etched across their faces.

I quickly shut my eyes tightly hoping that all of this is a nightmare. But luck seems to be going against me a lot lately. As I slowly open my green orbs again, I find myself looking at the handsome – _what? No...hideous – _face of James Potter.

My eyes grow wider and wider as realization dawns upon me. I can just imagine what it would look like from someone else's point of view. _I am lying underneath a guy in my empty house. And not just any guy! James Potter…ewww!_

I quickly push Potter off of me using my hands before yelping in pain. _Bloody bruised palm. The day just keeps getting better and better._

After the most awkward scenario I have ever faced in my life slowly comes to an end, Potter is the first one to get over the shock.

"Lily, what's wrong?" He asks with concern written all over his face.

As I frown in confusion at his worried expression - _he can't _**_seriously _**_care so much about me, can he? - _two more questions are fired at me;

"I asked what was going on Lily" Mum says in a stern voice reserved for occasions such as these.

"Who is _he?" _Petunia asks with a dreamy expression on her face and her voice sickly sweet. _Oh god…I need to leave before I throw up right here._

As my head turns to each of the occupant in the room besides me, I can't seem to decide who to answer to first. Finally I decide to answer Mum as she is the most sensible person in the room. _Not to mention the angriest as well._

"Uh…Mum…this is…um…James Potter" I say quietly. "And Potter, that's my Mum and my sister, Petunia".

"You address your boyfriend by his last name?" asks Petunia, her voice drastically changed from sickly sweet to bubbling fury.

_Silence. Horrible and terrifying silence._

_Okay…this day shall be known as the day when Lily Evans died from embarrassment – slash – humiliation – slash – anxiousness – slash – heart stroke – slash – stares._

Yup, stares. All six eyes in the room turned to my two, poor, green ones. I mean seriously, there is only so much a person can handle. As I steadily get up from the ground, I make sure to avert my eyes from all the stares being thrown in my direction.

"Lily, you have a BOYFRIEND?" Mum asks me with her mouth agape "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Um..well…I.."

"Yeah...Lily just told me this morning." Petunia quips in triumphantly, sensing how awkward the situation was turning for me.

"Lily", mum asks again, "Is he your boyfriend?"

I gulp nervously and try to make my brain work faster than a snail. As I glance at Petunia's evil smirk, I make up my mind and sigh before quietly muttering, "Yes"

"He IS?" asks Potter and then quickly corrects himself by saying, "I mean, I AM?"

"Hold on a second…what sort of boyfriend doesn't know that he is a boyfriend?" Petunia asks in a low voice. As I look to mum, I see her staring at me suspiciously.

_Oh, Merlin. Please kill me before I have to go through all of this._

I pleadingly stare with the best puppy-dog eyes look I can muster at Potter, praying with all my heart that he would understand my stupid plan without me having to explain.

An immense ocean of relief washed over me as his confused look is replaced by one of realization and I had never been more pleased to see that all-knowing, arrogant smirk on his face.

I stare in awe at how smoothly Potter takes over the stage and stretches his hand out to my mother and says, "Hello, Mrs. Evans, I am James Potter, Lily's boyfriend."

_One would think he practices saying this in front of the mirror a thousand times every day._

"Hello, James, it's a pleasure to meet you. Though, I must admit that I am surprised by your sudden appearance and _introduction_." Mum says while looking at me for the "introduction" part.

I gulp nervously and step forward. "Mum, actually we got together just recently and since I returned just yesterday, I didn't have time to explain things to you."

"But that still doesn't explain why he seemed like he had no idea he was your boyfriend at first." says Petunia desperately in order to get me into as much trouble as possible.

_Can you just shut up? What did I ever do to you? Heavens help me now!_

"Well you see Petunia, a gorgeous girl such as yourself – _ew...she's blushing – _must know that guys like me often forget that they are dating women of such fine households as a result of awe and disbelief at their good luck."

_Yuck. He sounds like such a suck-up. Who would ever buy that story?_

"Why James, you seem like a person who comes from a fine household as well. I am sure Lily is just as lucky as you to have found you. Aren't you Lily?" Mum says in a voice that could beat Petunia's sickly sweet voice any minute.

_Gross. I think my cereal's coming up. How can she even fall for that?_

I try my best to put on a smile but it only gets as far as to look like a grimace. "Yeah, of course" I say, hoping against hope that it doesn't sound as repulsed as I feel.

Mum doesn't seem convinced though, as she eyes me suspiciously. Panicking, I throw all my repulsion out the window and stare into Potter's eyes while trying to put on a dreamy expression. I even hold his hand, for good measure. After a few moments, I get that strange feeling of warmth and security I did while staring into his eyes again. And soon, the dreamy expression I had put on doesn't seem so strained.

After a while, I realize that we've been staring at each other for at least 3 minutes and avert my eyes, blushing furiously. _Get a hold of yourself Lily! What are you thinking!_

"So, as I was saying", Petunia says again, "Why did you call him by his last name?"

I push down the strong urge of groaning in frustration at Petunia's nosy habits and quickly process my brain to come up with an answer. "Well it's just something we like to do often. It's sort of like nicknames, you know", I reply, hoping that it sounds convincing enough.

"Yeah. I call her Evans all the time. But its weird now 'cause I'm in a house full of Evanses", Potter says with a crooked smile and gently squeezes my hand.

It isn't until then that I realize that my hand is still in Potter's and that it is the exact same hand with the bruise in it. _Strange, it doesn't hurt much. In fact, it feels warm and comfortable and…shit! NO NO NO…I did not just think that._

I hurriedly wrench my hand from his grasp and regret immediately as a hiss of pain escapes my lips.

"Merlin, Lily! Are you ok?" asks Potter. Seeing the genuine expression of concern on his face, I can't help but wonder whether he _actually _does care so much or is just a really good actor and putting up a show for mum.

"Actually, I hurt my palm while turning off the bloody alarm clock this morning." I say sheepishly to the room at large.

Immediately, I find myself being hauled into the living room and being made to sit down forcefully on the couch by Potter. _What is his problem?_

"Excuse me, Mrs. Evans but can you please get the first-aid kit?" asks Potter as mum enters the room behind us.

Mum nods slowly and leaves with a knowing smile on her face. I can't help but wonder what she's thinking. As soon as she leaves, I turn to Potter. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" I ask, frustrated.

"What do you mean? I thought you wanted me to play along with this whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing!" He says, raising an eyebrow. "Oh and by the way, you didn't have to _lie _to your family, Evans. If you were that desperate to get me to be your boyfriend, you could've just asked. I swear I wouldn't have minded".

"Oh please...I'd rather throw myself off the astronomy tower before dating you", I say, rolling my eyes. Looking up, I find Potter's smirk still plastered onto his face and sigh in defeat. _That boy just doesn't know when to give up!_

"_Anyway"_, I start again, "Thanks for covering up for me. This entire situation is just so ridiculous and I only lied to annoy Petunia. But then you showed up and everything tuned into a mess. But I'm glad for what you did" I say as politely as I can. _I mean, he **did** help me, didn't he? At least a thanks is in order._

"Anything for you, honey" he says with a smirk and wink. _There. I knew being good wouldn't last long._

"If you ever call me 'honey' again Potter, I assure you that you will wake up with several of your body parts missing. Get that?", I reply while narrowing my eyes dangerously. In response, he rapidly nods his head with a worried look on his face. _Ha! That will teach him not to mess with me._

"Anyway, as I was saying, why on earth are you doing this whole first-aid business?" I ask with a raised eyebrow.

"Huh?" he says, squinting his eyes and focusing on my palm "You're hurt aren't you? Yeah…you're palm's bruised." _So, how does it matter to him?_

"So? How does that matter to you?" I ask in confusion. _After all, its not __**supposed **__to matter_ _to him right?_

He stares at me as if he is expecting me to crack the punch line of some joke. But when all he gets is a confused look from me, he sighs _very_ heavily and says, "Lily, after all these years, I thought the answer to that question would be obvious. Isn't it?"

"_Huh?"_

"I can't _believe _I have to tell you why." He sighs again and says, "It matters to me because…" he trails off as my Mum enters the room. _**Damn** her timing. _

"Here's the first-aid, James", she says handing him the box and smiling that creepy all-knowing smile at me._ It gives me the shudders. Stop doing that!_

As James applies the ice pack and ointment on my palm, I wonder how those callused hands from Quidditch practice can be so gentle.

_Gentle? GENTLE? Lily…he hexes and pranks everyone that comes in his line of vision. In no way is __**he **__gentle! Merlin, I need help!_

After my palm is treated and better, Mum says, "James, why don't you stay with us for the holidays? Would your parents mind? After all, it's the first time Lily's brought someone home. I really want to get to know you better. I'll talk to Lily's dad and then we can make some arrangements. We would love for you to stay."

_NOOOOOO….wha..how..wher..wha..aaaaa! Potter…you better say no!_

"I'd love to, Mrs. Evans. I'm sure they won't mind, but I still need to ask my parents first.", Potter replies sweetly.

I glare at him with the most menacing look I can muster. _How dare he agree to it? How dare he even think about spending his summer with us? With__** me**__?_

As Potter glances at me, he nervously swallows after looking at my expression and runs a hand through his hair. I roll my eyes at his habit and wait for him to take back what he said.

"Actually on second thoughts, I think I'd rather not impose myself on you." He said with a very slight dejected edge to his voice. _He can be as unhappy as he wants. In no way am I ruining my summer trying to cover up the lie and spend my time with __**Potter**__, of all people._

"Nonsense! I will not take no for an answer", Mum says with her eyebrows furrowed. _What did I ever do to you, mum? Was I not a good enough daughter? You could have at least given me a warning instead of dropping me straight into hell. _"I am sure Lily would love for you to stay. Right, honey?" asks mum.

_There goes my summer down the drain. _

"Yes. Definitely" I lie through my teeth. "Please stay, _James_"

_That felt weird. I don't think I've called him by his first name ever since first year._

As soon as his first name leaves my lips, Potter's entire face lights up like a Christmas tree. I can't help but wonder whether it matters so much to him. _Of course it doesn't. Dumb Thought!...right?...yeah!_

"There you go! Now you won't be able to deny it", says Mum happily. _That woman will be the reason for my untimely death._

"Alright. If you insist, I'll ask my parents." Potter says with that stupid smile still on his face. _Now __**that **__smile is giving me shudders._

"Brilliant. So stay for dinner and after that, you can go ask your parents and then bring your luggage. Sound good?", asks Mum.

"Yeah…sounds good", Potter says in such a dazed voice that I have to wonder whether they are talking about the same thing or not.

"Great. Lily, come with me to the kitchen please. James, honey, make yourself at home." Mum says while walking out of the room with me.

_Honey? Since when did __**Potter**__ become honey? Oh, Merlin! Help! My house is being invaded by Potter!_

* * *

**To be continued...**

**AN: **Another chapter done! Hooray! I hope the readers are enjoying the fanfic. I would love for people to review please! Please give me as much feedback as possible and I'll post the next chapter as soon as I finish writing it.

Claudia


	4. A Not-so-boring Dinner Party

**Summer Surprise**

**A Not-so-boring Dinner Party**

* * *

_Let it be declared and printed in bold letters:_ **LILY EVANS IS OFFICIALLY CERTIFIED AS THE BIGGEST DUMBASS IN THE WORLD**.

Why? Because she had enough stupidity in her to declare that James Potter is her boyfriend and let him have dinner with her family. Hence the title. I know, I know; One may think that I am overreacting...but let me tell you…I most definitely _am not_!

As I sit on the dinner table munching on my grilled chicken and vegetables, made _especially _in _Potter's _honor, I wish I could just close my eyes and wake up to realize this all as a bad nightmare. But sadly, the world is conspiring against me. That's why…

_Vernon Dursely shows up at our house as well._

_Yup, that's right! Isn't that just peachy?_ And being the Walrus that he is, he invited himself over for dinner and has been droning on and on and on and on about the most boring topic a human - *_cough – Walrus – cough_* - could come up with; a drilling company. I mean, honestly, there is only so much you could say about drills. How the hell can it seem interesting to anyone? Surely even _the Walrus _isn't that boring?

_Oh who am I kidding? He **is **that boring. _

After 2 and a half hours – _how am I still alive? – _of Vernon's oh-so-interesting conversation with my Dad, who looks like he could fall asleep any second now, Potter decides to open his big mouth and certify that he is the biggest prat in the world_._

"So, Vernon...other than running a drilling company, what do you do for fun?" Potter asks

"Fun?" Vernon asks as if the word is alien to him. _Which it probably __**is.**_

"Yeah, you know…something you do with your mates to pass the time so as to not get bored" Potter says like he's talking to a four year old.

Mum snickers at this and I can't help but smile too. But as soon as I turn my head left, the smile is instantly wiped off my face. _Petunia looks livid. Uh-oh._

"I don't do anything for _fun. _Because I am a grown-up and matured _man._ Unlike kids such as yourself." Mr. I-am-a-certified-Walrus says haughtily.

I turn to see if Potter is upset by that comment but merely find an amusing smile on his face. _Oh who am I kidding? Potter is __**never **__upset. Seriously. In fact, even when he fell down from his broom from at least 20 feet high above the ground and broke his arm in third year, he was not upset. And also when…._

_Shit. I got side-tracked._

"Well, I may be 3 or 4 years younger than you, but that doesn't mean I don't know how to enjoy life." Potter replies.

"What are you trying to imply, _Potter_? That I don't know how to enjoy life?" Mr. I-am-so-fat-I-kill-people-by-sitting-on-them, retorts hotly.

"No, I didn't, but I think you realized it yourself." Potter says calmly.

I chance a glance at Petunia, fearing the worst. And indeed, I do see the worst. Her mouth is pursed in to thin line and her knuckles have turned white from the clutching the table hard. Her eyes are narrowed into slits and her bony face looks like it's on fire. _Stop Potter! Stop right there!_

"Well at least I know what _I_ want to do. And I am sure that you haven't even thought about you career yet. You must be like Lily, isn't it? You also attend a boarding school for dangerous criminal minded children, right?" Mr. My-ancestors-have-been-Walruses-forever-but-I-am-a -cross-species asks triumphantly.

I feel my blood boiling with anger and astonishment. _Why drag me into the conversation? What did I do?_

Yes, it is true that we have lied to Vernon about my schooling as Petunia didn't want any '_abnormalities to affect her relationship' _with the Walrus. But he never mentioned about me being a criminal minded girl in front of my face, let alone my whole family! That is what got my blood curling. _How dare he insult me like this?_ But when I turn my head at Potter's direction, the blood drains from my face…

_He looks scary. _That's the word. Scary…I have never seen him look angry in my presence, let alone _so _angry. His face looks like a volcano ready to erupt at even the smallest provocation and I pray to all the holy figures I know that he doesn't do something stupid.

But as I said…fate is against me…

One might say that Vernon's face looks like he has become the bloody king of the world! But I know that the expression on his face is solely due to the satisfaction he got from realizing he hit Potter's nerves. Mr. I-am-such-a-dimwit-that-sometimes-I-forget-my-name opens his mouth again to probably say his last words before Potter wrings his neck. _On second thoughts, I don't think that's possible considering the fact that he has a triple-chin…_

"What? Got nothing to say, _Potter_? Petunia's told me all about your abnormalities of course", Vernon says, staring pointedly at me. _Why t__hat little..um...huge piece of shit! _

"And I am sure _you_ (he points his fat forefinger at Potter) are no different either. I and my family would never tolerate such criminals amongst us. _Never._" He finishes triumphantly.

"_Vernon! _You are crossing the limit. There is _no _need to drag Lily into this. And James is as much of a guest as you are. So I would appreciate it if you apologize to him because -" Dad manages to say before the rest of his words die down in his throat due to everything that happens next -

There is an odd blur of colors mixed with an out-of-place "STUPEFY" - _or at least that's how my brain processes it_…

One moment, we were all sitting on the table with various degrees of anger boiling inside us, and the next thing I know, Vernon Dursley is lying on the floor with a stunned look on his face, Potter is out of his chair with his wand pointed at Vernon and Petunia is letting out a loooong and sharp screech that's gonna tear my eardrums. And to throw in a bit of spice into our 'boring' evening, an owl flies in through the open kitchen window and lands on top of the dining table.

_Holy Hippogriffs! What the hell is happening?_

After Petunia's screech dies down when her throat can no longer stand to let out any more sound, she flies to Vernon's side on the ground and glares at me like everything bad happening in the world right now is because of me. _What the heck did __**I **__do? Oh right…allowed Potter to have dinner with my family!'_

Feeling very, _very _uncomfortable with the glare thrown in my direction, I avert my eyes to the rest of the room. Our little dinner get together has turned into yet another nightmare in my life…

Mum looks like she's ready to faint right about now and dad is staring down at the floor and shaking his head disappointedly. But what really catches my attention is the look Potter is sending in my direction. It's an…odd look! It's a cross between sorry and determination, giving me an idea that he's sorry for how things have turned out but not sorry for what he did!

_Oh he __**will **__be sorry! I'll make sure of that._

"Look what you've done, you _freak! _YOU KILLED HIM" says pointing, still glaring at me.

"Me? I didn't even _touch _him, for Merlin's sake! And he is NOT DEAD. Can't you see he's breathing?" I add exasperatedly.

"Just barely…and no thanks to YOU!" she snaps at me.

I feel tears burning in the back of my eyes. More from anger and disbelief than the way I'm being treated by my OWN SISTER.

"What did you do to him? Make him better right NOW!" Petunia screeches again but only manages a squeak as her voice has completely retired by now. Her glare finally shifts to Potter – _about time too – _who has somehow managed to untie the letter from the owl's leg amidst all the chaos.

As the owl flies out the window, Potter calmly says, "I just stunned him. And I will make him better, but only after explaining what just happened here to him. It's better if he's like this while he's listening so he won't run away."

_Wow, he's actually right! Hard to believe that after watching him take such a rash action and stun the Walrus. I'll admit I don't regret seeing him being stunned since I've wanted to do that for so long myself…_

"NO! You will NOT tell him anything. I won't let you. You _freaks_ will ruin the only happiness I've ever found in my life." Petunia all but screams using her new found determination.

"_Petunia, _let them handle this. I'm sure if Vernon really loves you, he won't leave you." Mum says encouragingly, though I notice a hint of uncertainty in her voice.

_Yeah…I doubt he loves her that much._

Seeing Petunia still glower at him, but not say anything, Potter takes the hint and decides to explain things to the Walrus.

"Look, Vernon. Lily I are wizards and we go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry" he starts, "It's a school where they teach magic and it is hidden to muggles - non magic folk – like yourselves because people often seem to misunderstand our kind."

"Before I take the spell off of you though, I need you to promise that you won't tell anyone about it and you won't overreact. Just blink your eyes if you agree." Potter finishes determinedly

As all our eyes turn to Vernon's huge face, there seems to be a moment's hesitation after which the beefy man gives in and blinks his stunned eyes twice.

_Whoa…Potter's plan actually worked. Vernon actually promises to not overreact…I'm impressed!_

Potter must have caught the shocked yet impressed expression on my face as he throws an arrogant smile in my direction. I immediately regain my composure and put on a frustrated expression. But it only causes him to smirk and I turn my head away. _Git._

"Enneverate" Potter says, almost lazily.

As soon as the spell is lifted, Vernon jumps to his feet and takes a few steps back from Potter and me, as if expecting us to grow fangs and spit poison any minute now. _And I thought he wasn't going to overreact…_

Petunia steadily stands up and cautiously asks, "Vernon, are you alright?"

"Y-you're wizards? You can do magic?" Mr. I-am-so-thick-my-brain-requires-an-hour-to-process -a-small-information asks us, while pointing his stubby finger towards our direction.

"Yeah" Potter and I reply patiently.

The room falls into a long and uncomfortable silence where the only sound coming is that of breathing before Vernon finally speaks…

"Petunia, I need to go now. But I need to talk to you outside first. Mr. Evans – _he nods his head at dad -_ Mrs. Evans – _nods his head towards mum – _I'll see you later. Thank you." The Walrus says, without a trace of thankfulness in his voice, while completely ignoring Potter and me.

As we hear the front door shut behind Vernon and Petunia, Potter immediately starts apologizing to my parents…

"I am so sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Evans. I didn't mean to lose my temper. It's just that he kept insulting Lily and I couldn't take it." Potter says to mum and dad with sincerity in his voice. I blink at his choice of words but don't say anything. _He's probably trying to get into the boyfriend character. At least I hope so._

"No, James, we completely understand. Vernon did cross his limits at some point." Mum says to Potter in a motherly fashion.

"Yeah, Christine is right, you did the right thing", Dad adds. As he says this, I don't miss that all-knowing smile mum sends me. _Ugh. Not again, woman. I get the shudders._

"Uh…James? What is that letter about?" I ask Potter in an attempt to change the subject and avert my eyes from that creepy smile.

Potter tears open the envelope and scans through the letter before looking back up again.

"It's from my Mum and dad…they're wondering where I am", Potter replies.

"Oh goodness, would you look at the time! It's only natural for them to worry, dear. I think you should go inform them before bringing your luggage in here."

"Yeah, I think I'll do that. Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Evans. I promise I'll be back as soon as I they give me their consent. And I really am sorry for the way things turned out at dinner", Potter apologizes softly. I can't help but smile when I realize how genuine his apology was. _That bloke can actually be polite if he tries._

"That's really not a problem, dear" Mum says. "Well...see you soon, James. We'll just be in the living room", she finishes, throwing a meaningful look at Dad and walking out of the kitchen with him following her with a confused expression.

_Well, at least I'm not the only one who doesn't understand what's going on._

I turn back to Potter to reprimand him for the evening's chaos when he suddenly moves _very _close to me. "What do you think you're – " I start but Potter cuts me off by whispering, "I'm sorry for doing this, but I think it's important to convince your Mum. She's watching us from behind the door frame". Then he leans down and promptly kisses me on the lips.

My first impulse is to push him away from me, but when he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me closer, I am ashamed to say, I lose myself in his warmth and smell. Potter smells like pine trees and sandalwood. _It's entrancing I swear._ As his lips move against mine, I can't help but respond. _Merlin, he's a good snogger! _My hands fly to his hair on their own accord and as I tangle my fingers in his locks, I understand why he keeps doing it all the time. _It's __**so **__soft. _

As I start losing myself in the kiss, all too soon, Potter pulls back from me and looks me in the eye with an unreadable expression on his face. That's when it hits me!

_I just kissed James Potter __**and **__I enjoyed it! Oh, Merlin!_

"I…uh…um…WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR?" I ask him in a hissed whisper, hoping against hope that he did not hear the waver in my voice, or see the embarrassment in my face, or catch me enjoying the kiss. _It's not too much to ask for, right?_

"Your mum was watching us…I told you. She was checking whether we were lying or not I guess. Now she's gone. I swear I broke the kiss as soon as she left. But…" He trails off as the odd look in his eyes is replaced by the hugest grin I've ever seen adorn his face.

"But what?" I ask slowly, almost fearing the response.

"That was amazing. I've never felt anything like it before." He says with a glazed and dreamy look on his eyes accompanying that grin.

My face starts to heat up and I don't understand if it's from embarrassment or anger. _I think I'll go with anger._

"Whatever, Potter! Mum's not here anymore. So you can leave." I say with as much confidence I can muster.

"Whatever you say, Lily" Potter says as he stares off into space with that grin never leaving his face.

"Bye" he says before disapparating with a pop!

I release a huge sigh in the empty kitchen before sitting down in a chair and burying my face in my hands. _This is going to be a loooong summer. Bloody hell._

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN: **Hey guys, sorry for posting a bit late but school and all, you know! Anyway, I hope everyone's enjoying the story so far. I can't promise to update the next chapter by tomorrow…but I'll try. It'll be up in two days max. I really appreciate reviews and feedback.

Claudia


	5. Pine Trees and Sandalwood

**Summer Surprise**

**Pines Trees and Sandalwood**

* * *

As I walk into the living room after my 'goodbye' to Potter, I find Mum sitting on the couch and watching the television. Only, she isn't watching the television, but staring off into space.

"Hey Mum," I say after she doesn't notice me even after 2 minutes.

"Oh…hey, honey." Mum replies, breaking away from her trance.

"What are doing?" I ask walking over and sitting beside her on the couch.

"Just thinking about what happened today." she replies with an odd look in her eyes.

_Is she upset about what happened at dinner? Ugh. I shouldn't have let Potter stay…_

"I'm sorry Mum. Whatever happened at dinner shouldn't have happened. Petunia's probably never going to talk to me again." I say with a dejected voice.

Ever since I started going to Hogwarts and Tuney became Petunia, there has been an unspoken agreement in the family; No one speaks about anything magic related in her presence. But after what happened today, Vernon's probably gonna break-up with her and she's gonna blame me for yet another problem in her life. _Or worse, pretend I don't even exist._

"No, Lily, that's not what I meant." Mum says, bringing me out of my train of thoughts.

"You weren't?" I ask, genuinely confused.

"No. In fact, while you were in the kitchen – _that creepy smile is back _– Petunia came back and said that Vernon doesn't care about you being a witch. Though, he isn't very happy. But he'll still be with her." She replies, with a bit of surprise in her voice at the end.

Wow, I'm surprised too. The Walrus must really love Petunia. He just earned himself a huge amount of respect in my mind. _It's not much since he was in the negatives before._ But I'm happy for Petunia, though.

"That's really nice, Mum. I'm happy for he.r" I say with a small smile.

"Yeah. It is. But…" she trails off.

"But what?" I ask, worried by the way she frowns.

"Lily, honey, please don't be upset, but you know how Petunia is. She blames you for what _could _have happened were it not for and I quote, '_Vernon loving her so much'_. She's a bit angry with you right now, so please don't react to what she says to you for the next few days. Because she doesn't mean it. You know that right?" Mum asks.

I sigh. That is exactly something Petunia would do. _Blame me._ And no matter what mum says, she knows as well as I do that Petunia _definitely _means what she says. But for the sake of peace and my parents, I decide to _try _to not react. _What? I can't let her get away with __**anything **__now, can I?_

"Yeah I do. Don't worry, Mum. I'll not react if she's rude to me." _Not always, anyway_, I add in my mind.

Mum visibly sighs in relief. She hates us fighting, me and Petunia, that is. My Mum, Christine Evans, is probably one of the most peaceful people you'll ever come across. I mean, seriously, she'll do _anything _to maintain peace in the house. Even pretend that her two daughters are the best of sisters, even if it means lying through her teeth. I still love her for it though. If it were not for her, either Petunia or I would have been dead by now. _Preferably Petunia._

"Anyway, wouldn't you like to know what I was thinking about originally?" Mum asks suddenly, the worry from before leaving in an instant to be replaced by excitement and eagerness. _Why do I feel like I'm not gonna like what she's excited about?_

"Uh…yeah?" I ask uncertainly

"Honey, James is a wonderful boy. He's so sweet and caring. I don't think I myself could've picked any better. You two are perfect for each other and he loves you so much. He's the best boyfriend you've ever had, Lily. Not to mention he's dangerously handsome, of course. You two will be the best-looking couple to ever get married and then you can have two children with…"

"STOP! STOP! STOP!" I practically scream at my Mum.

_**Ewww…**__I am pretty sure a vomited a little inside my mouth. _I mean, seriously, the idea of me and Potter even dating each other is probably the most ludicrous thing one can imagine. Yet, here is my Mum, imagining us getting _married _for Merlin's sake! And having _children…__**Potter children!**_ _And I thought__** I**__ was crazy! Psh…_

As I stare at Mum with wide-eyes and a shocked expression, a small yet sheepish smile spreads across her face.

"Okay, so I may have gone a _tiny _bit ahead with that," she says slowly.

_A tiny bit? TINY? I practically gagged as she made me imagine that nauseating little dream of hers._

"Yeah, Mum. I think you did. You basically planned out my whole future out for me." I squeak.

_Squeak? Oh right…because my brain has been corrupted from all the impossible suggestions being thrown at me and therefore, is unable to send signals to my mouth properly. Please excuse it while it dies of humiliation…_

"Oh, c'mon, Lily. You'll never find another boy like him. I'm so jealous of you. I wish I had found someone so _perfect _when I was a teenager. Not that I'm complaining about finding your Dad. He was a complete looker back in our time as well. I remember this one time…"

"Uh, Mum…where is Dad?" I hastily cut her off 'cause I am sure I won't be able to hold in my dinner any longer if the conversation continues in this direction.

Mum quietly chuckles at my reaction. _Evil woman._ "He went to sleep early because he has a meeting tomorrow. It _is_ getting pretty late…" she trails off, turning her head and looking at the clock behind us.

I follow her line of vision and am surprised to see '11:00 pm' staring back at me from the digital clock. _Wow…time sure flew by. Do I even need to go into details as to __**where**__ the time flew by? NO. It'll probably take an hour or two to just recount everything._

"Okay Lils, I am going to sleep now. G'night!" Mum says while planting a kiss on my forehead.

I smile and say, "Good night, Mum! I think I'll go up to bed as well."

Mum stops and turns around from her spot, mid-way to the door of the living room and stares at me. "Lily Evans..." she says in a stern voice.

"What?" I ask, unsure of what I might've done.

Mum sighs and shakes her head disappointedly. "You are supposed to wait for James to come back. What's he going to do if he returns and finds everyone asleep?" Mum states as if that's the most obvious thing in the world.

_He can sleep on the floor, for all I care. I am NOT staying up all night waiting for Potter._

"Oh yeah, all right, um…I guess I'll just wait here, then!" I say.

_Oh screw it! I'm too polite for my own good._

After throwing a satisfied smile in my direction, Mum walks out of the living room, leaving me alone to try and not fall asleep. As soon as she leaves, a huge yawn escapes me. _Great. Now I need to kick out my much-needed rest out the window and wait for Potter to return. Just bloody fantastic!_

I try to keep myself awake by thinking absolutely anything at random. But no matter whatever I do, I keep returning back to Potter and my blood boils every time I remember that I am having to stay up so late because of him. _Ugh. Its 12:03…where the hell is that git?_

_I am walking into a garden full of lilies and petunias. The garden has a huge fountain in the center that is surrounded by royal white colored benches. The place smells of Pine trees (even though there are none around) and sandalwood. It feels familiar and I love it. As I sit on one of the benches and munch on a chocolate frog, – I dunno where it came from – I hear someone's footsteps coming closer to me. Suddenly, the scent of pines and sandalwood becomes stronger and I find myself feeling intoxicated and light-headed. "Lily…" the mysterious person with the footsteps coaxes softly. I can't see them because for some reason, my head can't turn around and the person is standing behind me. "Lily…" the person says again before the fragrance grows so strong that I completely lose myself in it. Where is it coming from? I wish I could find the source…_

"Lily! Wake up!" a voice says, breaking me away from my beautiful dream.

Surprisingly, even though I know I was dreaming and that the intoxicating smell was a part of that dream, I can still smell it. _It's almost as if I never left the dream…_

With that happy thought, I almost fall asleep again before that intruding voice disturbs me again…

"Evans, wake up!"

I groan and try to ignore it before realizing that my right hand is fisted around a piece of smooth clothing and only one person could be calling me 'Evans' in a house full of Evanses. I groggily open my eyes to be met with the most horrifying scene in my life…

Potters face is mere inches away from mine and he is staring into my eyes with a small smile playing on his lips. With him so close to me, I notice the flecks of green surrounding his otherwise hazel-orbs behind his glasses. As I move down from his eyes, my eyes fall on his lips…warm-looking and inviting. _Wait, wait…rewind! What happened there? Someone took over my mind for a second there. Someone who is __**definitely not me.**_I hastily avert my eyes from his lips and they land on my hand…

At this point, I would like to admit that I lost all my sanity for a moment. The thing is, the sight my eyes were greeted with was something along the lines of 'my-hand-was-fisted-around-Potter's-shirt's-collar -and-I-was-pulling-him-down-towards-me-because-I-r ealized-what-was-the-object-that-was-giving-off-th at-bloody-intoxicating-pines and sandalwood-scent. _Yes, it was Potter!_

Blushing a very embarrassing shade of scarlet, I immediately let go of Potter's shirt and pushed him away from me. Sitting up on the couch, where I had fallen asleep, and regaining some of my composure, I glance at the watch and find the time to be 12:30 am. _Hmm…I didn't sleep for that long…just 27 minutes! _

"Where were you? Why did it take you so long?" I ask Potter, completely pretending that I had not just been pulling him on top of me.

"Miss me, Evans?" the git replies, cockily.

"In your dreams!" I say irately, a second too late before realizing the irony of my statement.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but you were the one dreaming a minute earlier, not me." Potter says with a huge grin. _Sorry my ass!_

"Well, excuse me for falling asleep at 12:30! How preposterous, isn't it?" I ask sarcastically.

Potter rolls his eyes with the grin still on his face and says, "Yes, absolutely preposterous. Why were you sleeping here by the way?"

"Mum forced me to. Apparently, 'what would _dear _James do if he returned and found everyone asleep?'" I answer and add "Now tell me what took you so long."

"Mum and dad needed…er…some convincing," he says awkwardly and seeing my guilty expression, he hastily adds, "No, it's not what you're thinking!"

"What is it then?" I ask, still feeling horribly guilty. _His parents probably think I am an awful person for making him stay here without even meeting them._

"They…er…wanted to…er…meet you…'cause…um…I've sort of…you know…beentalkingaboutyouforages." He finishes with a jungle of mumbled words and blushes a light shade of pink.

_James Potter, __**the **__James Potter is blushing? Did the world come to an end? _I almost laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation, but manage to catch myself at the last moment and instead, replace it with a cough, not a very convincing one may I add.

"Um…right! So they agreed in the end, right?" I ask, still trying my best to not burst out laughing.

"'Course. They agreed the moment I told them…they just really wanted to meet you." He says, "But I expertly handled the situation and told them that you finally had a change of heart and came to your senses. And that now, we're dating. So they agreed to let me stay here for the summer as long as your parents are around." He finishes proudly.

Though let me tell you, I tuned him out after the "we're dating" part. _He told his parents as well! Great, now we have another pair of parents to handle and convince. _

"Why did you tell them that? Now we'll have to tell them about the so-called break-up as well" I say, frowning at him.

"Um…break-up?" Potter asks as his face falls for a split second before he regains his cool demeanor again. _Was I just imagining it or did he actually become upset? Probably imagining. _

"Duh! What did you think? I can't become your girlfriend for real now, can I? Nevermind, don't answer that." I add hastily, watching Potter open his mouth. "Obviously we'll have to break-up by the end of summer. So now, thanks to you, we'll have to tell your parents as well."

"Oh."

"Yup"

"All right"

"Cool"

"Uh-huh"

"What are you doing?"

"What?" Potter asks before realizing that I was talking about our one-word conversation. "Oh that! Nothing…it's just that it feels like you have it all planned out." he says with a slight dejected tone in his voice.

"Yup I do," I say. _That's such a lie. I just make this up along the way. Why else would I be caught in this mess in the first place?_

"Not if I can help it." Potter mutters under his breath, his smirk returning back in place. Unfortunately for him I hear what he says. Fortunately for him, I pretend not to. I dunno why, I just do. _Probably because I don't __**want **__to know what it means._

"Well, good night, Potter." I say, "Oh and you can stay in the guest room. It's the one on the top floor, first door to the left." I add, remembering about Mum's instructions.

"And where's your room?" Potter asks with a sparkle in his hazel-eyes – I give him a suspicious look – "Only wanted to know so that I know where to find you if I need anything," he says with a look of innocence on his face. _As I said before, innocence and James Potter don't go together._

"Across the hall, second door to the right. Petunia's is the third door to the right. And the bathroom's first door to the right. Got everything? – _he nods his head – _good. Well, goodnight!" I finish.

"Good night, Lily." He says before dragging his luggage out of the living room.

As I am about to follow his actions, excluding the luggage part, he sticks his mop of black messy-haired head back in and says, "Oh and Evans? I know you were dreaming about me," before leaving the room with a huge smirk on his face.

I stand rooted to the spot for a good minute or two before retreating to my bedroom. As I flop onto my bed and close my eyes, I can't help but wish that I can continue my dream from before. Though deep inside, I know that it won't be as good as it was, without that strong and intoxicating smell of crushed pines and sandalwood.

I groan internally and turn on my side before falling into a well-needed sleep. _Yeah, my brain definitely needs it. Considering all the weird thoughts I'm having._

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Hey everyone! Firstly, I'm sorry for posting this part late but you must understand that I had so much schoolwork that I hardly got time to breathe. The next part will be up as soon as I can. No promises as to when that will be. Probably in a day or two. The more reviews I get, the faster I'll upload…promise! I'll appreciate any feedback on the story.

Claudia


	6. The Nightmare in full-swing

**Summer Surprise**

**The Nightmare in full-swing**

* * *

"Lily?" A _very _annoying voice interrupts my slumber.

I moan irately and try to block the sound out of my ears.

"Evans, wake up" the annoying voice says in a sing-song tone. "The sun is shining and the sky is blue. The birds are chirping, calling to you"

As I hear a chuckle at the end of the 'morning call', I have a very strong urge to hex the person into oblivion. _No one who wakes me up this early has a right to live…_

"Seriously Lily, its 11:30 in the morning"

_Okay…maybe it's not __**that **__early._

As I _very _reluctantly give up on my dream, where I was eating a heap full of chocolate frogs and strawberries, my brain slowly registers the fact that the voice that _rudely _interrupted my sleep belonged to neither Petunia, nor mum. In fact, it was a very masculine voice. And since dad never comes to wake me up…

And then everything that happened yesterday hit me like a wall of bloody bricks. My eyes immediately snap open and then squint again as the sun's merciless rays of light shine upon them. Slowly and apprehensively, I change my position to get a better look and my sleep-breaker. And sure enough, I find James Potter smirking down at me from the foot of my bed.

_Merlin, I never thought I'd have to see this day. I mean, waking up to find Potter in my room! Seriously, what did I do to deserve this?_

"What?" Potter asks, "What did you mumble?"

That is when I realize that I actually mumbled the last part of my internal whining.

"Nothing" I say, extremely annoyed at him for speaking. _Who needs to speak this much in the morning?_

"Not a morning person, are you?" He asks with a mocking smirk plastered on his face.

"Piss off, Potter!" I bark at him "And what THE BLOODY HELL are you doing in my room?" I hiss, suddenly hyper aware of the tank top riding up and down at the same time and my _very _short pajama shorts. Self-consciously, I pull the covers up to my chin and narrow my eyes at his smirking face.

"Yep, _definitely _not a morning person" Potter says, completely ignoring my question.

"I asked, _What _are you doing in my room_?_" I repeat, gritting my teeth. _If he knows what's good for him, he'll answer my question without any further delay._

And he does. _Damn. I really wanted to hex him. _"Well, your mum sent me up to call you, sunshine. And being the good _boyfriend _that I am, I obliged to her request." _That's a good enough reason for me to hex him. Pity I'll have to get out from under the covers to get my wand. And I'd rather die than come out wearing this outfit in front of Potter. _

So I just satisfy myself by saying, "Call me 'sunshine' one more time and I'll make you forget your own name. And no need to remind me of the biggest nightmare of my life, Potter. It's bad enough as it is."

Potter tuts at me and shakes his inflated head, feigning disapproval, while saying "Now, now, Lily, we wouldn't want anyone to hear you calling me by my last name now, would we?"

I groan and as much as it hurts me to admit it, he's right. _I really need to get used to using his first name. Ok, pledge to self – no matter how much of a pain in the arse he is, I will always try and call him James. __**Try.**_

The prat smirks knowingly at me as if he knows exactly what I'm thinking at the moment. _Now __**that **__would be scary._

I put on the most menacing glare I can come up with and say, "Fine, _James. _But only because I care too much about not getting caught."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Lily", Pot-James grins and replies. _He's making it incredibly difficult for me to not curse him black and blue. I need to get him out of here before I lose it…_

"Since you've expertly accomplished your mission of waking me up, Pott-_James, _please _leave. Now._"

"Not so fast, Eva-_Lily, _how am I to know that you won't fall back to sleep once I've left?" Potter asks, mocking my slip of using his last name.

The fact of the matter is, I was indeed planning on going back to sleep once he left. _But he bloody well does not need to know that. _"I ruddy well was _not _planning on doing that" I say in what I hope is a convincing tone.

Sadly, it is not. "Don't think you can lie to me, Lily. I know exactly how to spot if you're lying or not; your eyes have an extra sparkle in them and you bite you lip at the end of finishing your sentence, just like you did now." P-p-James declares triumphantly.

I become dumb-struck and freeze for a moment at his observation skills. _Probably accomplished it by ogling at me for the past three years. _With that thought in mind, I regain my composure and say, "Fine, so what if I was? Why do I have to get up right now? In fact, I'd prefer delaying the act for as long as possible."

"I dunno why, but your mum needs to talk to you about something" P-James replies "Now, get your arse off the bed before I have to pick you up."

I stare at him for a few seconds for his use of language but quickly realize that it _is _Potte-ah!-James. _Phew, I was really close to breaking my pledge. For the hundredth time in the past three minutes, may I add._

"No, I swear to Merlin I'll get up once you leave" I say, desperately trying to get him out of my room and thus, prevent his perverted eyes from seeing me in my pajamas.

"No can do. I told your mum I'd get you to get up…as in, up from bed. So, as long as you don't get up from bed and walk to the bathroom, I'm staying. Oh, and you have precisely ten seconds to get up before I am forced to pick you up." Po-James! - _JAMES-FOR-MERLIN's SAKE – _smirks and says.

"Uh…um…I…can't. No…I _won't!_" I snap stubbornly. _Who the hell does he think he is? How dare he have the impression that he can make me do whatever he wants to? Oh wait…yes, he's the bane of my existence, James bloody Potter!_

"Time's up!" he exclaims before striding over to my side and roughly tearing the covers away from my body. Even though I try to protest his actions with all my strength, he hardly even notices the effort. _Bloody Quidditch practices!_

I don't miss the way his eyes slightly widen at the sight of my outfit and the way he falls silent for a split second while gaping at me. _As I said, the git is a pervert._ But what takes me by surprise though, is the fact that after a second or two, without saying another word, Pot-James picks me up and throws me over his shoulder.

As a mixture of surprise and anger flow through my body, I hardly have any time to react as he walks out of my room, across the hall and into the bathroom. Once there, P-James puts me down and I stop my incessant flailing of limbs.

"_Never EVER _do that again! Do you hear me?" I ask hotly, while jabbing my forefinger at his chest. Pott-James merely rolls his eyes and nods, though the ever-lasting smirk doesn't leave his face.

"Now please get ready and come down, will you?" he asks in an exasperated voice

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, you have to _leave _before I can get ready"

"Why didn't you just say so?" Po-James says before heading towards the door. I hear him chuckle lightly at the irritated groan I release while he disappears from view.

But a split second after he leaves, he sticks his head back inside again and I get an inevitable feeling of déjà vu from the previous night. And before he even says it, I know it's not something I'm gonna like.

"Oh and Evans, did I mention you look smoking hot in that outfit?" he says and runs away, laughing loudly.

* * *

After spending an hour in the bathroom, brushing my teeth, washing my hair with my lilac shampoo, practicing and accomplishing the task of imprinting the transition of 'James' from 'Potter' in my mind and changing my outfit to something _much _more suitable; a pair of denim shorts and a black t-shirt, I make my way downstairs, into the kitchen.

"….James, that is hilarious" I hear mum say while she wipes a tear away from her laughing face.

_God, mum. He's not even been here for a __**day. **__At least have the decency to __**pretend **__that you're not feeling like a 16 year old school girl who has a massive crush on her daughter's 'boyfriend'._

As I walk in, both the occupants in the room look up at me and smile.

"Oh good morning, honey." Mum says "I was just going to check on you to see what was taking you so long"

_Don't lie mum. You were going to pretend I don't exist and laugh at James' oh-so-hilarious jokes._

"Good morning mum. What's for breakfast?" I ask while walking over to the counter and searching for food. _The only thing good about morning is food. _

"Pancakes and strawberry milkshake. The milkshake's in the fridge and the pancakes are under that plate over there" mum replies, gesturing to a white plate kept neatly in the corner of the counter.

As I help myself to a generous amount of breakfast and settle myself down on an empty chair in the dining table, I hear mum and James go back to their conversation and ignore me. _Merlin, that woman's desperate to talk with him._

After a few minutes of peaceful food-relishing on my part and an absolutely worthless conversation on their part, mum speaks up again, "Lily, I wanted to talk to you about something"

_About time too. _"Yeah, mum" I say patiently.

"I want you to go with Petunia and Vernon to the swimming club today at 5 in the evening." She says slowly

_Did I hear that right or was I just having a temporary hearing problem? _"Huh?" I ask dumbly.

Mum releases a sigh and says "Look, Lily, I don't want there to be any differences between you and Petunia. And while I know that it is impossible for that to happen, I am requesting you to at least try and get along together. After what happened yesterday, you need to spend some time with Vernon and Petunia and try to explain things that need explaining."

"But mum…Petunia would never agree to go with me" I say, knowing that it is absolutely true.

"Don't worry, I've talked to her. Though, I'll admit she needed quite a bit of convincing," Mum wrinkles her nose at the memory "she finally agreed with you and James joining her and Vernon at the swimming club."

_Oh. Well then I guess – wait, WHAT? _

"What?" I ask, expressing my feelings "He's coming too?" I nod my head towards James.

"But of course! Where else would he go? You don't expect him to sit at home and get bored do you?" Mum asks in disbelief.

Suddenly realizing how odd my reaction must have looked, – _he __**is, **__after all, my 'boyfriend' and I am supposed to crave his presence (Merlin, the irony) – _I say, "Yeah, of course. He should definitely come. You'll come right, James?" I ask, glancing in his direction.

He rapidly nods his head; as if afraid that I might change my decision – _I don't blame him – _and says, "Of course, _sunshine"_ he smirks, knowing very well that I asked him NOT to call me that.

I clench my fists under the table and try to keep my expression from turning into a grimace. As mum starts talking to James again with such a high degree of enthusiasm that would seem impossible for a 43 year old to have, only one thought keeps running through my mind again and again…

_The nightmare is in full-swing._

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **And here's chapter six. I thank all those people who are following this story. I hope everyone's enjoying it and liking it. Please leave some reviews. I'd really appreciate that. I hope to get in the next chapter in a day or two. Until then, Harry Potter rules!

Caludia


	7. The 'Black' Shock

**Summer Surprise**

**The 'Black' Shock**

* * *

As the clock in my bedroom strikes four, I once again realize one of the most annoying theories of life; if a person wants something to happen fast, time mocks them and moves as slow as a sloth in sleep and if a person is dreading something in the future, time mocks them yet again and moves as fast as lightning on a stormy night. And right now, I am experiencing the latter of the two.

_Where on earth did the past 3 and half hours go? Oh Merlin!_

Cursing time and its annoying habits, I grudgingly get up from my bed and walk over to my closet to grab a swimsuit and towel. Confused as I always am about picking outfits, I can't manage to select a swimsuit that won't make me look like a 17th century prude or a slutty bitch who doesn't think of anything else but boys. _Merlin, I need new outfits._

Irritated at my lack of knowledge on fashion, I pull out all of my six swimsuits and throw them on the bed. Immediately, I cancel out a golden one that has 'slut' written all over it and a sky blue one that has 'prude' written all over it. After much thought, I limit my options to two swimsuits – a black monokini with thin straps and a Purple and white bikini.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, I walk down the stairs with my bag stuffed with my swimsuit, hair brush, and make-up (_so that I can hide my hideous red eyelashes after swimming) _in one hand and my towel in the other. After reaching the living room, I see that no one except me is downstairs yet. Confused, I glance at the clock on the wall opposite me and find that it is only 4:30 pm yet. _Wow, maybe I didn't take that much time figuring out what to wear, after all._

After another fifteen minutes pass away, I come to the conclusion that either Petunia wanted to delay seeing me for as long as she could or she was too busy drowning herself in make-up, - _only to_ _get it all washed away. Geez, that girl needs help – _and James had forgotten that we were supposed to leave, – _very unlikely. But seeing that he's not here… – _I decide to go and call him.

Leaving my bag and towel in the living room, I trudge up the stairs again and turn left to go into the guest room. _Guest my ass, more like intruder._ As I am about to knock at the door, I hear some voices from inside.

_Wait a second…__**voices?**__ As in plural?_ Curiosity winning over manners, I lean and press my ear against the door…

"Why would I lie to you? Merlin, Padfoot, I literally spent all night yesterday trying to convince you…and you still don't believe me?" James asks

_Padfoot? Padfoot…padfoot…who among the four marauders is padfoot, again? Even though I don't know what anyone else's nickname means, I know it's not Remus. I know he's Moony 'cause he's a werewolf (he told me last year during prefect duties). So it's either Pettigrew or Black. But which one?_

I am greeted with an answer as Black's voice rings out from inside the room, "You can't blame me, Prongs. Do you know how unrealistic and desperate you story sounds? Anyone can tell that it's a lie. I mean, do you _seriously_, no pun intended, expect me to believe that Evans, as in _the _Lily Evans asked _you _to be her boyfriend? Why don't you just admit that it was a lie you made up to escape punishment from mum and dad?"

_Aha, so it's Black! Wait…what? I didn't ask James to be my boyfriend. I asked him to __**pretend **__to be my boyfriend. And why was James at Black's house, escaping punishment from his mum and dad? _

That's when I realize that Sirius was referring to the Potters as _his_ parents and that James was at his _own _house, convincing Black about what happened yesterday. I knew that Black had moved in with the Potters at the end of fifth year because he was disowned by his family. That was the only one time that I actually felt something resembling respect towards Black and Potter. In fact, that was when I realized how close the two friends really were.

_But Merlin, all this means that Black knows __**everything **__that happened here._

"Yes, Sirius, I _do _expect you to believe it, 'cause it's the truth, for Merlin's sake! Now, please let me go…Lily's probably waiting for me downstairs. We're going to some swimming club. _Stop rolling your eyes! I am NOT lying_" James says and I catch a hint of exasperation in his voice.

Suddenly, I realize a _very _important factor and I mentally berate myself for not thinking about that earlier. _SIRIUS BLACK IS IN MY HOUSE!_ _Oh, Merlin! I never thought I'd ever have to face the day when __**both **__James Potter and Sirius Black end up at my house._

Without a second thought, I push open the door, anger boiling inside of me. Expecting to find two tall, black-haired, and _as much as I hate to admit it, _handsome teenage boys inside the room, I become a little more than surprised to see only one of them. Seeing me, James' hazel-eyes widen in shock and fear and I catch a glimpse of something in his hand that suspiciously looks like a mirror, before he quickly hides it behind him.

"L-Li-Lily?" he stutters, still in shock.

"Lily? Evans, you there?" Black's voice rings out again, and surprisingly, like earlier, I can't see him.

As my eyebrows furrow in confusion and suspicion at the voice, I vaguely hear James hiss, "Shut your yap, Padfoot"

"I'm not falling for that one, Prongs. You think you can pretend that Evans is there with you to get me to believe you? You are highly mistaken, mate! Though I must say if I didn't know any better, I would believe you; you do sound pretty convincing. You know, terrified and all?" Black says again, finishing his comment with a chuckle in the end.

Not able to contain my thoughts to myself anymore, I all but shout, not knowing where he is or whether he can hear me. _Which is a pretty dumb thing to suspect, considering he heard James' barely audible hiss. But why take a chance?_

"Sorry to disappoint you Black, but James isn't lying. I actually _am_ here. Now seeing that you couldn't figure that out yourself, I would assume that you can't see me. So would you be kind enough to tell me where you are?"

"Ev-evans? You're _really _there?" Black's voice asks. Though this time, all his cool demeanor is drained from it to be replaced by fear and shock like James'.

Feeling very annoyed at the invisible person and _very _confused at what was going on, I replied through clenched teeth, "Yes, Black. _I am here. _Weren't you listening? As I am sure James has already told you, this is _my _house. So I hope you would excuse me if I don't explain why I'm here and ask that question to you instead?"

_Not that I give a rat's poop about you minding, of course. You still have to answer me. _I silently add in my mind.

After a few moments of silence, I turn to glare at James because he's the only visible person in the room who knows what's going on. "Well?" I prod.

"I'm telling her, Padfoot" he announces to the seemingly invisible room and then sighs and looks me straight in the eyes and says, "He's not here, Lily. As in, not here _physically_"

With that said, he pulls out a mirror from behind him - _So it __**was **__a mirror – _and says "go on, look inside it", before pushing it out in front of him and gesturing at me to take a look.

Silently thinking that he has gone completely loony, I take the mirror from him and look inside nevertheless. Let me admit that I _was not _expecting the sight that met my eyes once I looked at the mirror. Expecting to see myself with an annoyed expression on my face, I nearly dropped the mirror in surprise as I found Sirius Black smirking up at me.

"Hey, Evans! Wow, you became hotter in just three days!" He says, still smirking up at me.

Usually, I would have come up with a witty, sarcastic comment at his remark. But given the present circumstances, I am having a little difficulty in even opening my mouth, let alone force my brain to think something that would help me defend my pride. _What? I consider being 'praised' by Sirius Black as an insult. So there._

"How?…wha?...mir…black…here?" I manage to ask James, expecting him to not understand a word of what I say. Surprisingly, he _does _understand what I ask and warily explains, "It's a two-way mirror, Lily. It helps me speak to Sirius directly instead of having to send owl-post. It's also very handy in times of emergency. That's why I packed it with my stuff last night and brought it here".

"Oh" I say, gaining some of my senses back. After a few more moments, where I try and get a grasp of everything that happened, I look at Sirius, who is _still _smirking – _Merlin, is his face stuck like that? – _and say, "For your information, I did not ask James to be my boyfriend. I asked him to _pretend _being my boyfriend. It's a huge difference"

_What the heck? After all that happened, this is what I tell him? Merlin, what's wrong with me?_

"Aha! I knew Prongs was hiding something. His story sounded _way too much _like a dream of his. Now it all makes much more sense and is much more believable, may I add."

"Well you can tease him about it for as long as you want. I swear I won't complain. But for now, we need to get going…we _do _have to go to the club. James wasn't lying about that either" I say, glancing at James who grins at me sheepishly.

"_James, _huh? What happened to _Potter, _love?" Sirius asks, his smirk growing wider. _Well, at least now I know that his face isn't stuck._

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Black! It's all a part of the act. I can't exactly call him by his last name in front of my family now, can I?"

"Hmm…I guess not. Very well, seeing that I am interrupting your _plans,_ I'll leave you two alone then. Bye Prongs! Bye Evans!" He says, chuckling at my horrified expression at his suggestive comment before disappearing from the mirror.

As soon as he disappears, I see myself looking back at me from the mirror, an expression of disbelief etched across my face. I don't know what makes me do it, but I suddenly let out a chuckle, remembering Black's comment and the ridiculousness of the idea. _Merlin, am I losing my bloody mind? I mean, I just laughed at Black's joke, didn't I? Yep…I am __**definitely **__losing my mind._

Turning around to face James, a small smile still playing on my lips, I say, "Let's go then. Petunia's gonna rip my head off if we delay any longer".

James looks at me incredulously, like I've grown an extra head. "Um, Lily? You ok? I mean, you just chuckled at Sirius's suggestive joke and didn't even tell me off for informing him about everything that's going on here." He says to me, as if I missed everything that just happened here.

"Nah. I understand that you might wanna talk to your best mate about such stuff. I'd tell Mary too, if she wasn't in Paris at the moment. And I don't think I would want to write about it either; that's why I _haven't _written to her, in fact." I explain, surprising even myself with my calm nature after everything that happened.

James sighs in relief and picks up a bag from his bed before walking next to me and saying, "Ready to face the cruel world with only your dashing, talented and smart 'boyfriend' as your company, sunshine?"

I roll my eyes at his immaturity and pig-headedness and make my way to the door. As soon as I turn the corner, an idea pops in my mind and I stick my head back inside the guest room before sweetly asking, "Oh and Potter, did I mention that if you _ever _call me 'sunshine' again, you would wake up to find _important parts _of your anatomy missing?"

Laughing at his horrified expression, I make my way downstairs again. And for once in my life, I understand why James does what he does.

_It was bloody entertaining, watching him stand there with nothing to say. No wonder he does that all the time to me._

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Chapter seven done! Thanks a ton to all those people who have favorited/followed my story…it means a lot to me. I'd really appreciate more reviews, guys. Any type of feedback is welcome. The next chapter is when they go swimming and I promise it's gonna be entertaining. It'll be up as soon as I finish writing it.

Claudia


	8. The Swimming Club

**Summer Surprise**

**The Swimming Club**

* * *

James eventually recovers from his shock at my comment and he easily catches up with me in barely two seconds, _without even _having to brisk walk. _Damn him and his long legs._

As the two of us make our way to the living room in peaceful silence, my eyes fall on a note kept on a small table in the hallway and I halt abruptly. After receiving a questioning look from James, I nod my head and gesture towards the note.

He just shrugs and takes a few steps back to come and stand beside me. I move and pick up the note from the table and start scanning through the message…

_Lily,_

_While you were too busy talking to your boyfriend in his room, not caring about the rest of the world, Vernon came to pick us up. Not wanting to make him wait for freaks like you and your boyfriend, we left. If you somehow manage to find this note before I return, since god knows what you were doing for so long, the address of the club is behind the note. You can come if you want to or not come if you don't want to. Honestly, I could care less._

_Petunia_

As I finish reading and turn around, releasing a frustrated sigh at my sister's hostile behavior - _even through a note, for Merlin's sake!_ - I let out a very small squeal of surprise as I find James's face uncomfortably close to mine.

"What're you doing?" I whisper, turning slightly red in embarrassment because of my squeal.

"Um…reading the note?" James says, raising an eyebrow and smirking

"Oh" I say, now turning a darker shade of red. _Stop blushing for Merlin's sake._

Getting a hold of myself, I clear my throat and put a more reasonable amount of distance between us before saying, "Well then, guess we have to go alone now"

With the smirk still on his face, – _I swear he and Black practice it in front of the mirror everyday – _James says, "So we're apparating? _Unless, _you haven't passed your test yet"

"Just for your information", I say, glaring at him, "I passed my test in the first try itself."

"Whatever you say, Lily" the git replies. Before I can even open my mouth to retort, he continues, "Well, what are you waiting for? Christmas? Don't we have to go the club?"

I huff indignantly and stomp off into the living room to get my bag and towel. A split second later, James enters with a "…only joking, Evans…oh!", he finishes when he sees me picking up my things.

I almost laugh at the way he thinks that I got upset because of his teasing, but instead, I smirk and say, "Don't worry, I'm more than used to your teasing by now. Nothing you do surprises or makes me upset anymore."

"Oh, really?" James asks, stepping closer to me with raised eyebrows and a smirk.

My eyes widen as I realize what he's planning on doing to prove his point and I quickly say, "Um, well, I guess we should leave. Now that I have my stuff and all, you know."

He chuckles quietly at my expression – _prat – _before both of us focus our attention on the address Petunia left. I feel an uncomfortable jolt in my stomach before the familiar feeling of being squeezed through a tire passes through me and we apparate with a resounding _pop._

* * *

As my feet hit the ground, I stumble back, unable to steady myself and hit something solid and hard behind me. Turning around, I realize that the solid _something _is not a something after all. In fact, it is a _someone. _And not just any someone, a James Potter someone. _Merlin, I'm losing my head. I can't even form coherent sentences anymore._

As James smirks down at me and steadies me by holding my arms, I can't help but notice how strong he is. _Stop. Enough with the crazy thoughts, Lily. Its James Bloody Potter after all and you can't let him control your mind._

Turning away from James and pushing the foreign thoughts to the darkest corner of my brain, I walk inside the club and over to the reception.

"Hello. How may I help you?" A young receptionist asks me, pleasantly.

"Could you please tell me where the pool area is?"

"Sure. It's on the south end of the club in the ground floor. It's easy enough to spot; just beyond two glass doors that are hard to miss. You're alone here?" She asks me

"Um, no. My sister, Petunia and her boyfriend are already here and this – I gesture towards James – is James Potter here. We're all here together." I reply, deliberately trying to avoid telling my relationship with James.

"Very well. Are you here as guests or do you have membership at the club?"

"No, my sister has a membership. But, neither of us do. So, we're just here as guests."

"Ok. Can you both please sign here? And that'll be an entry fee of 50$ for both of you" She says, pointing towards a register on the table.

I sign in the register and pull out some money from my bag while James signs his name and hand it over to the receptionist.

"I'm sorry. I would've paid but I didn't have any muggle money with me at the moment." James whispers to me after we head of in the direction of the pool.

"Don't stress over it. I wouldn't have let you pay for me, anyway" I say. And I mean it. _Why in the name of all things magic would I let him pay for me? We're not really dating._

James smirks at me after my comment and just as I'm about to ask what he is smirking at, he announces, "Look, we're here!"

Even though I catch his obvious attempt at trying to avoid my question, I pretend not to notice anything. _Because honestly, I think I'm better off not knowing how that weird mind of his works. _

As soon as we push open the glass doors at enter the pool area, I see Petunia and Vernon glance in our direction from their spot at the patio chairs. I slightly smile at Petunia and am not in the slightest surprised when she glances away immediately. As soon as her head turns away, I can't help but let a snort of laughter escape me. Glancing at James, I see he is trying his very best not laugh either. As soon as our eyes lock with each other, we crack up…

I honestly don't know how, but we both know what the other is laughing about. Vernon Dursley looks so ridiculously similar to a walrus without his shirt on that I can't help but double over in laughter every time I glance in his direction.

Finally, getting control over ourselves, James I part ways to go to the changing rooms and to put on our swimsuits. After reaching the changing rooms, I quickly change from my clothes into my black monokini – _Yes, that's the one I finally selected – _and tie my hair into a high ponytail before applying sunscreen and wrapping my towel around me. As I reach the last stair leading from the changing rooms to the pool area, I gasp at the sight before me…

_James Potter + without shirt = hot hot hot.__  
_

I stare with shamelessly wide eyes at James's bare upper body as he applies lotion on himself. I must admit that my breath hitched in my throat when he stretched his arms over his head, showing off his muscles, which didn't really need much showing off as every girl in the room was swooning over him anyway. Even Petunia, for that matter, was practically drooling at him and I am ashamed to say, so was I.

_Whoa, hold on a second there! Just because he may or may not look incredibly handsome and have an absolutely yummy figure does __**not **__mean you have a right to have such thoughts, Lily! He is James Potter and no matter how much your hormones oppose to it, you need to act indifferent towards him, __**even if **__he is shirtless. _

After reprimanding myself mentally, I gather all my will power to push away the hormonal thoughts and I climb up the last stair, joining him at by the patio chairs.

"Hey, Lily!" he says, smirking at me

Trying to ignore my rapidly beating heart and forcing my eyes to not look down at his body, I reply, "Um, hi!"

As I remove my towel from around myself and throw it in one of the chairs, I notice the way James's eyes widen and his mouth slightly opens at the sight of me.

_Okay, so I may or may not know that I have a good figure. But hey, that doesn't make me conceited! It's just what I've been told many times by my jealous cousins and I couldn't really disagree with them, considering the fact that I do have a perfect weight for my height. And while I most definitely am not fat, I am not one for turning extremely skinny, either. No, that's Petunia._

Therefore, because of the afore-mentioned reasons, I can't help but feel a little smug at the way James, or any other guy in the room for that matter, – _yes, even the walrus. But his reaction only makes me disgusted though – _reacts when I remove my towel.

After a moment or two of gaping at me, James suddenly holds my arm and pulls me toward him - _Not really helping my hormones here – _before whispering, "What do you say to annoying Petunia and Vernon?"

I glance at the said couple out of the corner of my eye and feel extremely satisfied at the murderous glances they throw in our direction, as if daring us to do something. Naturally, never one to back out of dares, I glance back at James and nod my head once before throwing my arms around his neck and pulling his lips to mine.

It was such blissful feeling that I couldn't believe someone like James Potter could even be so gentle. As his arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer to him, my teenage hormones kicked in and I dropped my hands from their spot in his hair to his bare chest. As our lips moved against each other's, I vaguely registered Petunia's groan of frustration from my right. Realizing that we had long crossed the mark of 'annoying' someone, I pulled back from James, panting slightly.

"Um, well, I think we most definitely annoyed them" James says, slightly breathless as well.

I chuckle in spite of myself and say, "Yeah, I think 'annoy' is an understatement"

After glancing back towards the Walrus and Petunia, who looks ready to be spitting fire at any moment, James looks back and mutters "yeah" to me.

Suddenly, he walks towards me with a smirk on his face and leans in towards me. For a second I think that he is about to kiss me again before he whispers "You know, annoying them wasn't the only reason I asked you to kiss me. It was more to prove to myself that yesterday night wasn't a dream" in my ear.

My eyes widen from shock and anger at his confession. But before I can utter a single word to him, James effortlessly picks me up with a "It's not fair we're all dry, even though we came here to swim" and jumps into the pool with me in his arms, ignoring my shouts and screams of protest.

Resurfacing from the water and moving my wet strands of hair away from my eyes, I glare at James's laughing face with all the anger I can muster.

"That was NOT funny, James" I growl at him.

"That…depends on…whose…point of view…you're talking from", he manages to say from between his guffaws. _Git._

"Har har, you're so funny" I say sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

"I know. That's why it's so hard to resist me, sunsh…" he trails off, warily glancing in my direction. _Ha! My threat worked. Woohoo! _

"You'll do good to remember not using the 's word' if you wanna live" I say, narrowing my eyes.

"I know, Lils. That's why I didn't finish my sentence." James says before taking off and swimming to the other end. _Flawlessly, _I grudgingly add.

_Wait a minute…_

I immediately follow his actions – _though not as flawlessly. Hmph – _and swim to the other end as well. As soon as James's head resurfaces, I say, "You can_not _call me Lils"

"And why not, may I ask?" James asks with a raised eyebrow

"Yes you may" I say, feigning superiority

James releases a snort of laughter and even I can't help but smile. "Ok. Why not?"

"Because only my parents and close friends call me that"

"Well, _Lils_," he starts, "I'd like you to know that I consider you pretty close to me. So you don't have to worry about that" he says, solemnly crossing his fist over his heart. _Merlin, he's so melodramatic!_

"No, but –" James cuts me off by splashing water in my face.

"You talk…no sorry, let me amend that…you _complain _way too much. Anyone ever told you that?" he asks smirking

After rubbing my eyes to rid them of the water, I glare at him before splashing water on him myself and saying, "You know, you shouldn't have said that…no sorry, let me amend that…you should _never _say anything at all"

"This means war, Evans" James says, putting on a false air of seriousness.

"Bring it on!" I say before both of us splash water at each simultaneously and start laughing.

* * *

An hour later, as I emerge from the changing rooms in dry clothes and join James at the pool area again, he says, "Um, Petunia and Vernon left again, without us"

"I wouldn't expect her to do otherwise. In fact, I would've been surprised if she _did _wait for us" I say with an air of indifference.

"Well then, I guess we're apparating back again?"

"Yup. Let's go" I say before both of us walk out of the club and into a secluded area where we feel it's safe to apparate.

Focusing all my attention to picture my house in my mind, I turn on my heel and with the familiar jolt of apparition, we leave the spot with a _pop_ and appear in the front porch of my house. Though this time, I make sure not to stumble back into James again.

As I start making my way inside the house, James grabs my arm and turns me around. After I fix him with a questioning look, he says, "I had fun today. Thanks" before overtaking me and entering the house.

I stare at the spot where he disappeared from for a good two minutes before my mouth opens on its own accord and pushes the words out without me even realizing it…

"I had fun too" I whisper into the empty space.

As the words leave my mouth, I realize that it is completely true and that I did indeed enjoy the company of James Potter. _That _thought in itself scares me more than anything else. _Oh, Merlin.__ This cannot be happening!_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Another chapter done guys! Thanks to everyone following the story and favoriting it. Please please please leave some reviews. I will post the next chapter as soon as possible. No promises as to when though. Sorry.

Claudia


	9. Civil Conversations

**Summer Surprise**

**Civil Conversations**

* * *

A few days after our swimming club experience, I find myself lounging in a chair outside in the warm summer sun. Looking around me, I see the flower beds in our front porch and the empty street before me. I release a sigh of contentment and smile to myself. Closing my eyes and letting my head fall back on the chair, I start enjoying my few James Potter-free moments…

"Here you are, Lily."

I can't help but release a groan of frustration at his presence. _Why does this always happen to me?_

Scowling, I slowly open my eyes and face the inevitable truth of my life. Grinning like a moron, James comes and takes the seat beside me and from the corner of my eyes, I see him turn his face towards me.

"What do you want?" I ask him, frustrated.

Ok, I'll admit it…I _am _being a bit harsh. But ever since someone had corrupted my brain on the swimming day, I found that the best solution to keep such foreign thoughts away was to be hostile towards James. And let me tell you, I was successful. So in order to prevent my sanity from losing, I decided to continue with my plan.

"Why do always assume that I want something? I just came to find you." James replies easily.

Things such as these make it difficult for me to be so rude towards him. _Where is the old 5__th__ year James Potter who would have at least tried to flirt with me 10 times in the past minute? Merlin, please return him so that I wouldn't have to think twice before flinging an insult at him!_

I sigh, rubbing my temples before replying, "Okay. Tell me why you came to _find _me."

"Your mum was looking for you. I think she's in the kitchen right now."

"Why does she always send _you _to find me?" I ask, curiously. And I really _was _curious. I mean, why always send him? Couldn't she find me herself? Or even better, she could always _call _me!

James simply shrugs his broad shoulders, which once used to be thin and scrawny, before saying, "_Je ne sais pas, mademoiselle, Evans."_

I stare at him for a few moments before asking, "You know French?"

"It would seem so," he says, smirking

"How?"

He ruffles his hair – _argh!_ – before saying, "My Mum had got me many tutors when I was a kid because it's sort of like a tradition for every Potter to know at least ten different languages. It's pretty dumb, I know…but that's just how it is."

I roll my eyes at him. Only someone like him would find learning so many languages _dumb. _After a few more moments of silence, I catch James staring at me from the corner of my eye. _A__gain._

"What?" I ask him exasperatedly. Finally, when I turn to look at him, I find an odd mixture of surprise, happiness and – _nervousness? - _ on his face.

"Nothing. It's just that…um…I was…sort of…expecting you to make some comment about me being a 'rich spoilt brat'", he says, looking down at his hands. _Am I dreaming or is __**the **__James Potter actually nervous? More importantly, nervous about __**such **__a trivial thing? _

Not able to hide my amusement anymore, I burst into laughter. And not just a chuckle or giggle, either. The 'clutching your stomach and rolling on the floor' or 'tears leaking out from your eyes' type of laughter. As I lift my face and catch James's reaction, I see his eyes widened and his face completely gob-smacked. This does nothing more than making me fall into a new round of laughter.

After a good five minutes of laughing on my part and staring on James's part, I regain enough composure to ask, "Not that I'm denying the fact that you _are_ a spoilt rich brat", I start and have the urge to laugh again when James sighs in relief as if he was worried about my mental health or something – _psh. What a ridiculous idea!...right? - _"but don't you think that it is hardly something to be nervous about, James?"

"Nervous? I wasn't _nervous_! What gave you that idea?"

"Only the fact that you were stuttering and staring down at your lap while speaking. Oh and also your hair ruffling. Can't forget that annoying and nervous habit of yours now, can we?" I say pointedly _and _while stuffing my inner voice which is practically screaming '_Oh but you love to tangle your fingers in his hair as well, Lily' _to the back of my stupid brain.

A smug look spreads across James's face before he says, "Know all my habits, do you, Evans?"

I sigh and shake my head disappointedly. _Trust James Potter to turn a civil conversation around to make it seem like I have a crush on him. Which I __**absolutely don't, **__just so you know. _

Again, I catch the fact that James dodged my initial question to him, but I don't push the matter further – because of the same 'not even going to bother and try understanding his brain functions' reason. Instead, I decide to turn our conversation back around…

"Know what? I'm not even gonna dignify that question with a response. Now tell me why mum was looking for me, will you?" I ask James.

"Only if you say 'please'" James replies cheekily.

It takes all my self-control to not whip out my wand and hex him on the spot. _Boy, does he know how to get on my nerves. _I grit my teeth and say dangerously, "Why was mum looking for me? Tell me or _you_ will be the one pleading here."

He gulps and decides to drop it – _wise decision. _"I think she's going out again. She wanted to give you some chores to do or something I guess."

Eagerly grabbing the opportunity to get away from James, I get up and walk inside the house and into the kitchen. Spotting my mum washing the dishes, I ask her, "Why were you looking for me, Mum?"

Mum jumps a little and looks at me over her shoulder before replying, "God! You scared me for a second there, honey. Where is James?"

I roll my eyes for the hundredth time that morning. _Honestly, why was everyone avoiding my questions? _Though her question seemed hardly surprising, considering the fact that she had practically adopted James and was behaving as if he was her only child, it still infuriated me to no end.

"Outside." I reply shortly, before repeating my question.

"I want you and James to go to the supermarket and grab some stuff for me," Mum replies, shrugging nonchalantly. "Your dad and I are going out for dinner tonight so I need to stay and prepare the dinner for you and James before leaving."

"Mum, do you know that James is a pure-blood wizard?" I ask mum and seeing her confused expression, I explain, "it's a wizard who has always had a family history full of wizards. So I really doubt that James would even know the basics of shopping in a supermarket full of muggles."

"Honestly, Lily, how different can shopping of wizards and muggles – that's what it's called right? - be? Just take the poor boy out with you…I'm sure he gets bored in here all day," Mum says.

_Yeah, I'm sure he gets really bored. We only have to pretend to be boyfriend and girlfriend twenty four hours a day…no big deal at all! His life seems as boring as drill companies! Please note the sarcasm. Thank You._

"Fine…I'll take him with me. And why will you have to make dinner for _only _James and me? Where is Petunia going?" I ask Mum, remembering her previous comment.

"She has a date with Vernon. Oh and Lily, I made a list of things I need from the shop. It's kept on the counter along with some money. You can get some other things if you and James want," Mum says, turning back to her dish washing.

What. On. Earth? Mum would have _never _allowed me to have bought anything for myself if this were any other day when James Potter was _not _at my house. This is a clear case of unfairness and partiality. _Way to go for subtlety, Mum!__  
_

I go to the counter and pick up the list and money before walking out the front door again and joining James on the porch. "Let's go" I say as soon as he looks up at me from his spot at the chair.

"Go where?" He asks, a curious expression on his face.

"To the supermarket. Apparently, you are getting really bored inside the house," I drawl.

James clasps his hands together and in one fluid motion, jumps up from the chair and positions himself in front of me, grinning. I can't help but notice how much he looks like a twelve year old on a Christmas day. Unknowingly, a small smile creeps onto my face.

"What is this supermarket thing? Is it something like Zonko's Joke Shop at Hogsmeade?" he asks, something like hope shining in his eyes. _Oh who am I kidding? It __**is **__hope._

I roll my eyes at him, though the smile is still on my face, before replying, "No, you dunderhead. It's a shop where you buy everyday Muggle stuff. You can get anything there, from clothes to vegetable to utensils…anything muggle".

As I look at James, I get a bit surprised to find that his expression did not change a bit from before. I had expected him to be a little disappointed after knowing that it was not a place that attacked customers with life-threatening items as soon as they stepped inside the shop.

"Oh well. It's about time I tried out something new, anyway. Things were getting a bit boring. As long as you're coming with me, I can turn this into an interesting experience," he finishes, smirking.

I frown and smack his arm before replying, "No funny business, Potter. Don't make a scene while we're there or say anything remotely related to magic or buy anything without asking me or pick up random stuff and start trying them out or–"

I freeze as James places his forefinger on my lips, effectively silencing my speech. "Do you even pause for a breath while speaking? Or should I say rambling?" he asks grinning, with an eyebrow raised.

As he drops his finger from my mouth, I release a breath that I hadn't realized I had been holding. _Odd. _

"Whatever. Just don't–"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Don't misbehave, don't talk, don't move, don't breathe and don't live," He says, counting them off on his fingers. "Did I miss anything?" he asks me with mock curiosity as his lips twitch upwards.

I narrow my eyes at James but can't help as a small smile threatens to spread across my face too. "If I didn't know any better, I would think that you were mocking me, James Potter."

"Wouldn't dream of it, Lily Evans. Now let's go to this supermarket of yours," he says, chuckling quietly.

As I start walking towards the road – partially to get to the supermarket and partially to hide the grin on my face – James calls out from behind me, "Aren't we apparating?"

"No. The area is too crowded to apparate to and it's pretty near, so we can walk. Now, come on." I answer over my shoulder. As usual, James falls in step beside me in a split second – _I think he grew an inch in the past few days! – _and we make our way towards the supermarket.

And to his great pleasure and my surprise, the walk to our destination passes by quiet pleasantly, if I do say so myself. In fact, I get quite a shock when I realize that I enjoyed his company. _Again. _And that the journey didn't seem nearly as long as it was with James there to entertain me. _Undoubtedly, the guy is pretty interesting._

With many bizarre thoughts buzzing in my head, we walk inside the supermarket and grab a shopping cart before stepping inside the shop. "Ready to 'try out something new'?" I ask James, quoting him from earlier.

"As ready as I'll ever be", he replies, before excitedly pushing the shopping cart inside and leaving me rolling my eyes at his childish behavior in his wake. As I follow James inside the supermarket, one of the aforementioned bizarre thoughts hits me with full force…

_I can't believe we actually had so many civil conversations till now. How did he survive without flirting with me every second of his life and how did I survive without hexing him black and blue? How the hell are we even getting along well together? I'm supposed to **hate **his guts, for Christ's sake! Is the world coming to an end? Merlin knows that the latter is more likely to happen…_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Hey fellas! I know that this chapter is shorter than the rest and nothing special happens here. I only wrote it to show how Lily is starting to realize that James isn't so bad…! Next chapter will be up when I finish writing as usual. It won't take longer than two days, hopefully. Until then, bear with me please. Oh and thanks for all the reviews…greatly appreciated guys!

Claudia


	10. The Shopping Spree

**Summer Surprise**

**The Shopping Spree**

* * *

"Wait…hold on!" I shout, running to keep up pace with James while he pushes the trolley and waits for a second or two before running up to it and starting the process again. _Merlin, he's so childish!_

"You need to learn how to walk faster, you know!" he says, looking at me over his shoulder.

I finally catch up with him and fix him with a glare before saying, "One, I walk at a completely normal speed; it's _you _who's practically jogging. Two, you need to stop that trolley game of yours…people are staring. And three, we are here to _buy _stuff so we need to stop and pick things up" I explain slowly.

"Hmmm…okay! You're right! What do we need to buy?"

"Let's see…wow! That's a really long list"

"Maybe we should split up so you can get one half of the items and I'll get the other half", James suggests.

I eye him suspiciously before saying, "Even though I'll admit that doing that will make things go much faster, I am not off my rocker to let you wander off _alone_"

"Merlin Lily, I'm not a little kid. At least have some trust in me", James says, smiling. But I also catch something else in his eyes; something that I can't exactly place; something serious; something odd…

I clear my throat, realizing that I have been staring at him openly. "Right!...um...well…fine, you can find these items while I look for the others", I tell him, carefully tearing the list into half and handing him one half of it.

* * *

"Broccoli? Eww…why does mum need broccoli?", I wonder out loud.

After moving through rows and rows of items and collecting everything needed on the list, I finally reach the vegetable section and stare at the word 'broccoli', innocently written down on the paper.

_Very _reluctantly, I pick up a few broccoli's and stuff them into a packet, silently cursing mum's horrible choice of vegetables. Needless to say, broccolis are not my favorite. _Why in Merlin's name would she even want those hideous things?_

Suddenly, I am greeted with an answer as I remember that Petunia has gone on an only-salad diet, saying that she has put on '_so _many calories' over the summer. Rolling my eyes at my sister, even though she is not here, – _'cause I'm just cool like that_ – I continue scanning down my list.

After fishing out everything on the list five minutes later, I decide to buy a few stuff of _my _choice. _Merlin knows such offers from mum come only once in a blue moon. At least having James Potter in my house has __**some **__perks._

* * *

_Okay, scratch out that __**few stuff…**_

Eyeing my overflowing trolley filled with chocolate chip-cookies, three bags of wafers, dark chocolate ice-cream with mint, licorice candies, and strawberry flavored gum, a few minutes later, I come to the realization that I _may _have overdone it a bit. _Oh who cares! I love food and I am proud to admit it, unlike some people - *cough* Petunia *cough*._

Extremely contented with my shopping, I make my way back to the spot where I parted ways with James. But upon reaching there, I am surprised to find that he is not done with his shopping yet. _What could be taking him so long? Is he buying even more stuff than me? Merlin, I don't have so much money…_

Snapping my head around in all directions anxiously, I finally push my trolley in the direction opposite from where I had been, hoping to spot a head of black, messy hair…

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, BOY?", a voice behind me bellows, successfully attracting my attention. _And by the looks of it, everyone else's as well, _I realize, making my way through the throng of people gathered around the spot of the commotion.

"I keep telling you, I didn't do anything, for Merlin's sake!"

My eyes widen as I recognize the second voice and realize two major points – one, James got himself into trouble when I specifically told him not to and two, he just said '_Merlin' _in the presence of at least 10 muggles who were watching him.

"What hocus-pocus are you mumbling, boy? What on earth is this 'Merlin'?", a rather buff looking man with blonde hair and grey eyes asks James as I finally manage push my way to the front of the crowd and take in the scene…

Even though there is not much to take in, I realize that something's wrong by observing at the red faced, buff man in front of me who looks ready to be spitting fire at any moment now. James on the other hand, has a very determined and composed look on his face, despite his blunder of a) saying 'Merlin' in front of muggles and being caught at it and b) doing god-knows what he's done.

For a split second, something similar to admiration for James bubbles inside of me as I realize that I would've probably fainted from anxiousness by now if I was in his place. But as soon as it came, the admiration quickly disappears to be replaced by anger…anger at myself for even thinking such a horrendous thought. _I would've never gotten myself in his position in the first place._

"I meant to say 'god'. But that's not even the point here! The point is, you are accusing me of something I didn't even do!", James replies throwing his hands up in the air in frustration.

Parking my trolley on the spot, I quickly march over to James's side and ask, "What's going on?"

James turns to look at me and I become overwhelmed as numerous emotions flash through his eyes; exasperation, surprise, relief, happiness and regret before they finally set on determination again. Confused, I open my mouth to repeat my question when the blonde man cuts me off –

"This young ruffian over here was trying to flirt with my fiancée!", he says, pointing towards a brunette – _I hadn't even noticed her before – _who was at least ten years older than us and was currently standing in the corner and inspecting her nails like she could care less about what was happening.

For a few seconds, I just blink, taking in the situation. I turn my head towards James's now anxious face that seems to be waiting for my reaction, to the beefy man's flaring nostrils and glaring eyes narrowed towards James, and finally stop at the bored looking woman in the corner, before my control-meter bursts and I crack up, laughing my head off…

If there is one thing that I can be certain of in life, it is – _and as conceited as it sounds – _James' infatuation with me. Trying to run away from him for the past six years of my life has taught me at least one thing – no matter how annoying, egotistical, arrogant and persistent James Potter is, he respects women. And the brunette currently standing in front of me was one of the last people James would consider flirting with, not that she is ugly or anything,but because she's just not his type. Apart from that, I could come up with a dozen more reasons as to why that idea itself was maddeningly ridiculous.

The way she stares at her fingernails and behaves so ignorantly is enough to make me double over in laughter and clutch at a stitch on my side. As I lean into James for support and glance up at him, he gives me a surprise and amusement mixed smile that makes my heart flutter. _Stupid heart._

Ignoring the foreign feeling in my heart and controlling my giggles, I face the blonde guy again. "I'm sorry, but I assure you Mister, that my boyfriend would never do such a thing", I say, surprising even myself. _The heck Lily? You know you didn't have to lie and tell him that James Potter is your boyfriend._

Feeling James's eyes burning holes in the back of my head, I defiantly force myself to not turn around. Because there is only one possible reaction to be expected from James Potter after my declaration – a smirk. So instead, I force my attention back to the man in front of me and pretend like I hadn't said anything out of the ordinary.

"Oh! Your boyfriend, is he? Well, miss, I'd suggest you to keep an eye on him. People such as him never last long in relationships. Unless, you don't really care either…" the pig in a wig – _Yes, I've just decided to call him that, thank you very much – _replies, eyeing me with disgust.

Just as the words are out of his mouth, my right hand instinctively moves out and predictably, James runs into it. I glance at him to see him narrow his eyes dangerously at the blonde pig. Knowing that when James Potter gets seriously angry, death seems better than facing him, I quickly say, "Listen, I have no interest in talking with you. So, we'll be leaving now, please."

Grabbing James's arm and leading him away from the scene, I take my trolley and instruct him to do the same. Five minutes later, as we leave the supermarket with shopping bags in our hands, I ask "So, you gonna tell me where that accusation came from or not?"

James turns his head and looks at me with a smile on his lips and a gleam in his eye. I return his smile and offer him a licorice candy from my shopping bag before gesturing him to start his tale.

* * *

Ten minutes later, the stitch on my side returns as I somehow manage to ask James to stop walking and let me die, laughing in peace. He obliges and joins me in on the laughter, doing nothing to help my aching sides but only contributing to increasing my insanity.

Needless to say, Potter had just finished telling his story and the summary of it was something like this –

After James had bought the items on the list, the only thing left to buy was honey. So, while he was scanning through the rows, the pig's brunette fiancée came up to him and started flirting with him; saying stuff like 'oh, what is such a handsome face like yours doing here, shopping?' and 'Not from around here, are you? Wouldn't miss such a pleasant sight if you were.' After James got disgusted by – and I quote – 'aunt icky' and showed no interest in her, she got desperate and started running her fingers over him. And the blonde pig, being the dimwitted prat he was, walked in on them at that moment. Obviously, Aunt Icky launched into a fantasy tale of her own where James was playing her role from two seconds ago and was trying to 'flirt' with her. That was the point where I heard him bellow and saw the rest of the scene unfold before my eyes.

After a few more moments of painful laughter, we get a grip on ourselves and continue on our way home, occasionally launching into silent giggles and chuckles.

As we reach the front door, James grabs my arm and turns me around to face him. I notice that odd look from before in his eyes as he says, "Thanks for trusting me, Lily"

I blush faintly and awkwardly reply, "Um…that's ok. I mean, I _knew _thatyou wouldn't do something like that, disrespect women, I mean. And the fact that you would actually try to flirt with someone ten years older than you seems a bit unrealistic to me. Other than that, you als – "

At that moment, James presses his lips to mine and cuts me off in mid-sentence. At first, I become so surprised that I stand there like a moron, frozen on the spot. But as his warmth and crushed pines and sandalwood scent engulf me, I find myself unable to form any rational thoughts, let alone fight the impossible urge to kiss him back. _I can't help it…he's a hell of a snogger._

As his lips move against mine, more passionately than our previous two kisses, I barely register the fact that the shopping bags fall out of our hands as his wraps around my waist and mine jump to tangle themselves in his hair.

I blame whatever happens afterwards on raging teenage hormones, incapable brain functions and boody-amazing snoggers. Somewhere in the middle of our kiss, James runs his tongue along my bottom lip and _very surprisingly, _my stupid brain doesn't even take a split second to make the decision; I promptly open my mouth a little and allow him entrance.

After a good few minutes of our heated kiss, the both of us break apart, gasping for much needed oxygen. Flushed and red in the face, I look up at James to see his expression adorned with the biggest grin humanly possible. I immediately look down again and clear my throat, hoping he would come back to his senses.

Luckily, he does. "Um, well, Petunia was looking out her window, you see", he explains lamely.

I glance at him and raise an eyebrow. James simply shrugs his shoulder and picks up his bags before walking inside the house. Standing outside in the sun, I close my eyes and sigh, utterly confident about one fact –

_James was lying; Petunia wasn't watching from her window. Why? Because her window faces the backyard and not the front of the house._

But the fact that scared me was that _I didn't care that he lied_. _In fact, I was quite glad…_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Hey guys, sorry for posting this later than usual. But you'll have to get used to it, I'm sorry to say. My teachers are mercilessly drowning us in schoolwork and it's difficult to keep up with everything. So instead of two days, I'll try to post chapters every week. I know it's sad but please understand. And I love you guys for the reviews and everything. Please continue to send them and I promise that I read every single one of them.

Claudia


	11. Getting to Know Each Other

**Summer Surprise**

**Getting to Know Each Other**

* * *

"LILY! WAKE UP, HONEY", I hear mum's voice bellowing from somewhere far away.

I groan and pull up the sheets to cover my head and block out the noise. _Ahh…peace!_

"AND DON"T GO BACK TO SLEEP. YOU NEED TO COME DOWN!"

_Gah! That woman is hell bent on ruining my life!...or my sleep at least. _Pretending that I can't hear anything, I tightly shut my eyes and force my mind to return to my beautiful dream.

_I can almost see the chocolate frogs and strawberries…_

"GOD, LILY! I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!I'M SENDING JAMES UP NOW IF YOU DON'T REPLY", Mum's voice mercilessly pulls me out of my dream.

Hearing her threat, I immediately bolt up and sit on my bed, eyes wide. _The last thing I need is for James Potter to see me in this outfit __**twice! **_

Grumpily staring at my too small pajamas, I reply, "No, mum! I'm up"

Fuming, as I hear laughter from downstairs, I get up and make my way to the bathroom. While brushing my teeth and trying to disentangle my bundle of knots, I realize that it's been a week since my life turned into a nightmare and James Potter showed up at my house.

_A week? It seems like he's been here forever!_

* * *

After washing my hair with my lilac shampoo and changing my outfit, – _black shorts and a blue t-shirt – _I make my way downstairs into the kitchen to face another day of lying and deception.

Expecting to see my mum flirting with my 'boyfriend', I am a little more than surprised to see someone else sitting around the table, chatting with mum and James; someone who I unfortunately know – _our nosy neighbor, Mrs. Charlotte Smith._

Groaning internally and plastering a fake smile on my face, I make my way towards the dining table. As soon as I reach near them, James turns his head towards me and his face noticeably lightens up before he greets me with a , "Good morning, Lily"

Throwing a nauseatingly sweet and sarcastic smile towards him, – _to which he replies with a smirk. The git – _I turn my head towards the other two occupants of the room…

"My, my, Christine! Your daughter is getting prettier by the day!", Mrs. Smith exclaims.

I internally roll my eyes at her behavior. _Why? Because everyone in this room, excluding James, knows that the Evanses and Smiths don't get along together._

Her daughter, Selena Smith has always been my rival in the muggle world – a fact that _dear_ Mrs. Smith knows very well. _Hell! She probably trains her daughter to become better than me in any way possible._

"Yeah, she is!", James whispers from beside me.

Feeling a blush creep onto my face, I turn and glance at James to find him staring at me with a small smile on his lips. Immediately, I turn my face away from him and promptly ignore the feeling of butterflies in my stomach.

_Blush? Fluttering butterflies? Merlin, Lily! Get a grip on yourself. Next thing you know, you'll be playing with your hair and giggling like a bimbo._

"Aww…aren't they just _adorable? _You know Lily, you're very lucky to have found a boy like James. A pity Selena didn't find him earlier, isn't it?", Mrs. Smith finishes with a chuckle which is so fake that it might as well have been a grimace and no one would notice.

"Who is Selena?", James asks Mrs. I-fake-everything-I-do-so-that-people-don't-realiz e-what-a-bitch-I-am.

"She's my daughter, dear. _And _she's Lily's best friend. Very pretty too,"

I get so disgusted at her comment that I can't help but roll my eyes right there and then. Fortunately, only mum sees my expression and nods her head understandingly at me. _Thanks mum! I missed you! Where did you go?_

"Lily's best friend? How come she's never mentioned Selena before? Neither have I seen her visit Lily once, yet!", James asks curiously. _Oh James! How naïve, you are! It's obviously because __**she ISN'T my bloody best friend!**_

"Um…well…they haven't been in touch, I guess", Mrs. Smith says.

_Well at least something she says isn't a lie._ Luckily, Selena has not shown her face to me for around a year. I, on the other hand, have not shown any signs to meet her, either. So, it's a win-win situation.

Seeing James's doubtful expression, Mrs. Liar-liar-pants-on-fire – _please ignore the irony of this coming from me - _continues hastily, "Tell me how you and Lily got together. I'm sure it's a very interesting story".

_Oh crap!_ I chance a glance at James and see him with an expression that would seem pretty normal to anyone else – _not me. _After six years of experience with James Potter, I know that expression comes on his face when his brain works at a speed to thousand miles per hour. _Good thing too…mine seems to be frozen._

"You know what? I realize that you haven't told me that story either, Lily! Go on…tell us what happened", mum says, speaking for the first time since my arrival.

_What the hell, mum-in-disguise? Just when I thought I had my sensible mother back, you had to return didn't you? Merlin, help me!_

Without having any second thoughts, I start my 'love story' with "It happened after our final exams" at the same time James says, "It was before our final exams"

_Seriously? What did I ever do to deserve this?_

After watching Mrs. Smith's confused and mum's suspicious expressions, I turn to see James watching me with amusement in his eyes.

_Think it's very funny, do you? Har har, I could almost die laughing. Merlin, he's such a prat!_

"Sorry, it happened _before _the exams", I say hurriedly. But, trust my luck to go lock itself in one of gringott's vaults as James says at the same time, "I meant it happened _after _the final exams"

_I think I've lived enough. Maybe it's time to die. There…I can see the light…_

As I stare at the table in front of me, wondering if it would look odd if I start bashing my brains out by banging my head on it, a sudden idea pops into my mind…

I pretend to lean on the table while saying, "What we meant was that…"

CRASH._ I'm a genius_

I mentally praise myself as I jump up and down while trying to get the hot coffee from burning my skin. _Yup. I just deliberately poured scalding hot coffee on myself. Nice distraction, isn't it?_

"Ow, ow! Darn it…it's freaking hot. Bloody ow!", I scream. The fact that my skin is indeed burning adds more realistic expressions on my face.

"Freaking hell, Lily! Are you all right? I'll get some ice for you", James says with concern written all over his face as he makes to go get some ice from the refrigerator.

"No, wait!", I say, grabbing his arm and stopping him.

As he turns around to look at me, I try to give him a meaningful look so that he would understand my strategy. But the fact that he notices my slightly red arm and his eyes fill with worry doesn't help. So instead, I go with plan B…

_If he's gonna be so bloody blinded by my reddening hand, he can save himself from this mess. I'm out of here…_

"Er…I think it's better if I just go take a shower again. I'll have to clean my clothes anyway", I say, standing up from the chair.

As the occupants around the table nod their heads, I leave the room and climb the stairs to the first floor. As soon as I get into the bathroom, I turn on the tap and let cool water run down my arm. As a sigh of relief passes my lips, I can't help but wonder what else I'll have to do to keep up this act.

_I almost bloody burnt my hand! Merlin, this better be the last time I ever do anything like this!_

* * *

Quickly taking another shower and wrapping myself in a towel, I start examining the damage in my arm. Luckily, it's just a small red patch and not a serious burn. Still, I make a mental note to apply some ointment as I open the door and step out into the corridor.

Lost in thoughts of whether Mrs. Smith would buy whatever story James feeds her and whether it would include me being desperately in love with him, – _highly possible – _I don't notice as my leg slips on the water dripping from my hair and I start falling backwards…

_Into someone's arms_? Looking up, I find James staring at me with an open mouth and wide eyes. As he sets me into a more stable position, I become hyper-aware that my towel slipped down a little when I fell.

Hastily pulling up the piece of cloth and holding it tight around my body, I watch as James scans me up and down with his expression from before still intact. "Merlin! Wow!", he whispers, barely audible. Unfortunately, I _do _hear it.

Trying to force down the blush creeping onto my face and failing miserably, I apprehensively watch James raises his hand towards my bare shoulder almost as if he were doing it unconsciously. _Merlin! Maybe he __**is **__doing it unconsciously. _

I force my jammed voice to work and manage to whisper. "James!"

I watch as he tightly shuts his eyes and immediately draws back his hand before saying, "I'm sorry"

"It's ok" I pause, "Has she left?", I ask him, in a desperate need to clear the awkward atmosphere and change the subject.

James drags his head up and slowly opens his eyes and I can almost see him battling internally with himself to not look down as he replies, "Yeah, she just left"

"Oh. All right then!", I say before turning around and starting towards my bedroom.

"Lily, wait!", he shouts from behind me.

"Yes?", I ask turning around to look at him.

I roll my eyes as James swallows and tries to distract himself by looking anywhere other than my body – _and fails epically. _"Yes?", I ask again, a little exasperated.

"I…I…I can't…remember", he says slowly before promptly turning his face around in the other direction. Expecting him to walk away or something, I become confused when he doesn't move from his spot.

"Can you please come to my room once you're done? We can talk then. It's a bit hard to concentrate right now", he finally says after a few moments of silence.

Blushing as red as a beetroot and thanking my almost non-existing lucky stars that James can't see me, I nod my head before realizing he won't be able to tell. "Er…yeah, okay!", I say awkwardly.

* * *

Five minutes later, I make my way across the hall dressed in a pair of blue jeans and a red halter top and stop in front of the guest room door. Fighting the urge to press my ear against the door and eavesdrop to check if some other conversation like last time is going on, I raise my fist and knock on the door thrice.

"Come on in", James shouts from inside

I push open the door and enter the room to find him sitting on his bed, smiling at me. "Hey, how's your hand?"

I simply shrug and give him a small smile in response before sitting on the edge of the bed and asking, "So…?"

"So…couldn't wait to get in bed with me, Evans?", James asks, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"James", I say warningly

"Only kidding", he pauses "No seriously, I wanted to talk to you about what happened downstairs"

"Oh you mean about _dear _Mrs. Smith?", I say wrinkling my nose

"Yeah. Was it just me, or were neither you nor your mum too keen for her company?", James asks curiously.

"No, you're right. We don't get along well. She's just an obnoxious neighbor who likes to poke her nose in everyone's business. And her daughter, Selena? She's an exact copy of her mother, if not worse. She's hates me and honestly, the feeling's mutual. Merlin, I don't even know why that woman came here today…probably 'cause she heard about you. If I'm not mistaken, she was poking her huge nose everywhere and spying on us. I won't be surprised if she goes home and trains Selena to woo you or something. Either _that _or she's gonna ask Selena to find some catch more handsome than you. As if that's even possi…"

I instantly shut my mouth and internally kick myself. _Shit. Was I imagining things or did I just mention that James is a handsome bloke during my rambling? And a __**really **__handsome one at that too! Merlin please…let me be imagining it…let me be imagining it!_

Cautiously, I look up to see James smirking so wide that it seems like the smirk would eat up his entire face.

_Crap. I was __**not **__imagining it. Lily, what wrong with you? Oh, that's right! __**Every-bloody-thing!**_

"Think I'm very handsome, do you? Nobody else could _possibly_ be more handsome than me, huh?", James asks, grinning like a maniac.

"I never said that!", I say quickly. _Yes, you did, _my brain speaks up. _Shut up, brain!_

"Yes, you did. And before you protest, I'll like to tell you that you said it during your rambling 4 seconds ago and your exact words were 'she's gonna ask Selena to find some catch more handsome than you. As if that's even possi', which I'm sure ends with a b-l-e in the end"

I stare at him, dumb-struck for a split second before my jaw drops to the floor as well. _Damn. He left no room for denial. Bloody smart git!...hell! I just admitted James Potter is handsome __**and **__smart in just the past minute. I need a brain transplant. _

"If you're gonna continue with this conversation, I think I'll just leave, thank you", I say getting up from the bed. _Isn't that just awesome? Losing a conversation, Lily? No worries…just run away!_

Chuckling with amusement, James winks at me and says, "I don't blame you, Lily. I know I'm a knock-out. It just sounded thousand times better coming from you…even though it just sort of slipped out"

Blushing an embarrassing shade of scarlet, I clench my fists and try to look intimidating while saying, "I told you I'll leave. I'm not kidding"

"Ok, ok! I'm sorry", the git says, looking anything but sorry. "What I _really _wanted to say was that maybe we should get to know each other better".

"Huh?" I ask, with confusion on my face.

"Unless you want to have a repeat of today's encounter in the morning, I suggest we get to know more about each other. So, the next time someone asks us something about our relationship and how well we know each other, we're prepared."

Grudgingly admitting that he's right _again, _I say, "Fine. What do you think we should do?"

"Play a game", he replies simply.

At my incredulous look, he rolls his eyes before replying, "Honestly, Lily! It's like I have to explain everything to you. What I meant was that we should play a game where we ask each other questions in turn and answer them"

I nod my head before realizing what danger this may lead to. "Wait a second! Do we get to ask _any _questions?", I ask, frightened.

"Don't worry. We can ask questions that are…are…askable?" he finishes lamely.

I laugh despite myself and James smiles at me. Momentarily thrown-off by his _genuine _smile, I fall silent for a few seconds before saying, "Let's start then, shall we?"

"I'll go first. Simple question, what's your favorite color?", James asks

As I open my mouth to reply, he cuts me off by saying, "Nevermind. I know its turquoise. Let's see…something else…"

After a few moments of silence, James gives up and says, "Damn, Evans. I can't think of anything that I don't know about you which will not sound weird for a first question."

I roll my eyes at him and mumble 'stalker'. As he opens his mouth to retort, I ask, "when and who was your first kiss?"

James stares at me for a few moments because of my straightforwardness before replying, "Melinda Garton, Ravenclaw, in fourth year and your question right back at you."

"Henry Halison, Hufflepuff, beginning of sixth year"

"Oh, I remember Halison. And I'm pretty sure he won't be forgetting me any time soon, either", James mutters, narrowing his eyes and staring off into the distance.

"I would imagine so. Considering that you and your gang locked him in the green house with those man-eating plants and poured slime on him once he escaped, I don't think _anyone _would forget you"

Cringing under the glare I send his way, he hastily says, "Well, we got side-tracked. Um…if you don't mind me asking…your first shag?"

"I…uh…have never had one", I reply, tinging a light shade of pink. As I glance towards James, I find his face glowing and his eyes sparkling as he smiles towards me. _Wow, he looks disturbingly…beautiful. _

Shaking myself mentally and pushing the ridiculous thoughts away, I say, "You're question right back at you, too. Not that I care, of course. You probably wouldn't even remember…but in case you do…"

"You're right…I don't remember. 'Cause I've never had one, either", James says, blushing. _Blushing? He is actually blushing?_

For reasons unbeknownst to myself, my heart flutters happily in my chest at his answer. _Why? It's not like I care! _

After getting over my initial shock at the fact that James Potter, the second flirtiest guy at Hogwarts, – _Do I even need to clarify who's first? A bloke with the initials SB – _the guy who has numerous fan clubs after him, the guy who can practically get _any _girl at school, - _except me, of course – _has _never _shagged anyone, I manage to chuckle lightly at the absurdity of the aforementioned guy _blushing._

"Ok…so next question; what is the thing that you ever regretted doing, the most?", James asks hastily, trying to stop me from commenting on his previous answer.

Stealing my eyes away from James's questioning glance, I look at the floor before replying in a quiet voice, "Befriending Snape".

After a few moments of silence, James says, "Lily, I'm sor – "

"No, it was not your fault", I say, cutting him off. As I look up at James again, my heart melts at the extremely guilty expression in his eyes. "Seriously, it was _not. _In fact, I've wanted to thank you for a long time for making me realize that Snape never deserved my friendship and that I was a fool to not be able to see something that was so obvious"

"Two things, Lily; first – you were _not _and will _never _be a fool. If anyone's a fool, it's that slimy git for not valuing your friendship. Second – if you wanted to thank me, why didn't you? I swear I would not have been offended", James finishes, his smirk back in place.

"I guess I was afraid of feeding your already overlarge ego", I reply, grinning.

I can't help but feel grateful towards James for ridding me of the pain in my chest that had settled since fifth year OWLs and for lightening the mood of our game by his last sentence.

"Ouch. You wound me, Evans", James says, dramatically placing his hand over his heart and feigning hurt.

I roll my eyes for the umpteenth time and say, "Oh shut up! So…what did you regret doing the most?"

I watch as James seems a bit hesitant to answer before he looks me straight in the eye. I almost stumble back in surprise at the amount of sincerity present in them as he replies, "All those years I spent being a complete prat and hexing people who didn't even deserve it. I wish I could take it all back"

_Whoa…I did __**not **__expect that! _

I don't know what makes me do it, but I reach out and squeeze James's hand reassuringly before saying, "All that matters is that you regret it and realize that you were wrong". As he looks up at me with an odd look in his eyes, I give him the most heart-felt smile I can come up with and do a victory dance internally as he returns it with one of his own.

_What? It's not every day that James Potter gets all serious and sorry. Successfully cheering him up deserves at least a victory dance!_

* * *

Around half an hour later, we finish our game with 'your first pet' – _Needless to say, we avoided serious questions after the 'regret' one – _and I start to make my way across the hall, to my room.

Hardly half-way through my journey, James shouts my name from behind and I turn around to see him casually leaning against his room's doorframe. "You never asked me what I told that neighbor of yours about us getting together"

I suspiciously narrow my eyes towards him and he takes it as a gesture to continue. "I told them that you were head over heels in love with me and were begging me to go out with you since third year. Naturally, I took pity on you eventually and agreed to go out with you _during _the exams in sixth year"

Before I could even grasp all the information thrown my way, James laughs his head off and returns to his room, closing the door behind him.

As my slow brain finally processes all the information, an involuntary chuckle leaves my lips at his antics. Making my way back into my room, I smile at the true story that James fed mum and Mrs. Smith, merely exchanging the roles of the two main characters.

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **And here's chapter 11 for you guys. It's longer than the other chapters but I wrote it mainly to show that James and Lily are getting closer. Thanks to everyone who wrote reviews or followed/favorited Summer Surprise. I love you guys! Please write more reviews. As usual, I'll put the next chapter when I'm done.

Claudia


	12. A Nighttime Stroll

**Summer Surprise**

**A Nighttime Stroll**

* * *

_Bloody hell…why?_

Tossing and turning in my bed, I curse my mind for wandering to James Potter every time I close my eyes. _Never _in my life have I _ever _not been able to sleep whenever I wanted to.

After a few more moments of trying to fall asleep, I finally give up and throw the covers off of me, getting up from bed. Turning on the lamp in my room, I check the time and groan as it reads 2:30 a.m. before walking over to my window and opening it to let some fresh air in.

As I lean against my window ledge and absently stare at the full moon, vaguely aware that Remus is in his werewolf form right now, a more pressing thought runs through my brain; a thought that has been on my mind for quite some time now; the thought concerning a certain tall, black and messy-haired teenage boy. James Potter.

Just one week back, if someone had told me that I would not be able to sleep because I would be thinking about _Potter, _I would have either died laughing at the ridiculousness of the idea or I would have hexed them into the next century for even suggesting such stuff. But now that I am _actually _facing this situation, I can't hide a fact from myself any longer – _James Potter is a pretty decent guy._

I sigh and close my eyes, pondering over my newly admitted thought. _James agreeing to pretend to be my boyfriend…James treating my bruised palm…James defending me against Vernon…James and me having fun at the swimming club…James going shopping with me…James worrying over my red arm…James playing the question game with me…James regretting his bullying habits…James kissing me…_

With a small gasp, I open my eyes. Shaking myself mentally to get rid of the hormonal thoughts, I concentrate on more pressing issues; now that I think about it, I realize that James had changed and given up on his prattish habits a long time back…around a year back, in fact.

_A year? For __**an entire year**__ I've practically been blind? For __**an entire year **__I decided not to see the truth because I was so stubborn? For __**an entire year **__I've been yelling at James for nothing? Merlin, I am horrible!_

Not being able to handle the guilt building inside of me, I try and think of other reasons as to why I may have missed this change in his character. _Maybe I was too busy with studies? Maybe he never showed me this side of his? Maybe we didn't see other that much over the past year?_

I snort at myself, shaking my head disappointingly. My excuses become worse as time passes. James practically chased me so that he could complete his quota of asking me out for the day. _**Honestly, **__am I __**that **__desperate to prove myself innocent? Yes._

As soon as I decide to apologize to James for my behavior for the past year, a new fear settles over me. _What if I'm wrong? What if he __**hasn't **__changed? What if all of this is just a show to win me over?_

Groaning with frustration, I go back to staring at the moon, trying to clear my mind of anything remotely related to James Potter. And that's when I see it – a perfect distraction to take my mind off of my conflicting thoughts…

I watch with mixed excitement, anticipation, and anxiousness as the row of bushes across the street, directly visible from my window, rustles and susurrates. As the bushes part and the occupant within them comes forwards, I gasp again, though this time, it is more from awe than epiphany.

A stag. A majestic and huge stag with antlers that are just as huge and royal, steps forward into the moonlight. Its silky smooth fur glows and radiates an atmosphere of nobility that leaves me stunned. I hold my breath, fearing to scare away the handsome creature, even though I am feet above the ground and he can hardly hear me.

My breath hitches in my throat as he gracefully lifts his head and looks up at me. Blaming my rapidly beating heart for alerting the stag, I stare back at it. For moments, the two of us just stare at each other, as if mirroring each other's actions. And as crazy as it sounds, I feel like it watches me with the same feeling of awe as I watch it with.

Slowly, I dare to move and smile towards the majestic animal, at the same time as I realize that it probably can't even understand my gesture. Surprisingly, it _does _understand, and my eyes widen with shock as he slightly nods his head in response. I swallow and try to register the fact that _a stag _can understand me. My heart almost breaks as I watch it turning around and getting ready to leave…

_No. I can't let it leave. I can't let such a magnificent creation walk away without solving its mystery or touching it…_

And before I even realize what I am doing, I shout out, "Wait! Don't go!"

_Great Lily, now you've officially lost your mind. Gestures may have been understandable, but expecting an animal to understand the English alphabet is taking it too far._

I almost pass out in surprise as the stag turns his regal head around and blinks at me. Picking up my jaw that had dropped to the floor, I stupidly ask, "Can you understand me?", making sure that its loud but not too loud. Again, the stag nods ever so slightly and my heart jumps to my throat at his small response.

Unable to contain my excitement any longer, I decide to go out and solve this mystery. Hastily pulling on an overlarge t-shirt of dad's over my pajamas, I quickly but quietly make my way down the stairs, into the hallway and out the front door.

Once outside, my eyes immediately dart towards the bushes across the street where I saw the stag from my window. My heart drops to my stomach as I stare at the dark, empty air which suddenly feels cold - despite it being summer - without the presence of the noble animal.

Still not willing to give up, I race to the middle of the road and start turning my head in all directions, looking for any signs that might lead me to antlered creature. _Where could it have gone? Did it really reply to me or was I just imagining it? If he did indeed understand me, why did he leave?_

Lost in my thoughts, I don't see the car coming from behind me until the noise of its horns pierces my eardrums and I whip my head around, the flash of the headlights blinding me…

_BEEEEEEPPPP_

I immediately shut my eyes and prepare to die - _considering that my legs have glued themselves to the ground, I don't see a point in trying to make a run for it -_ before someone grabs my arm and yanks me away from my spot. As I feel the car whiz past me, I dare not open my eyes, still finding it difficult to believe that I am not dead.

But I _do _open my eyes when I find myself being enveloped into a very tight embrace by a pair of strong arms. Still breathing heavily from my 'death-escape', I get a full-blast access of pine trees and sandalwood scent which instantly calms me down! ..._James!_

While I lose myself in the inexplicable sense of safety radiating from him, I hear James whisper in a very worried tone, "Merlin, you scared me, Lily!". In response, I snuggle closer to him and allow him grasp me tighter in his arms.

After a few more moments of clutching onto him and assuring myself that I am alive, I finally let go of James, breaking the embrace, and immediately regret it as the cold air hits me with full-force and I shiver involuntarily.

"What on _earth _were you thinking? Coming out here at this hour? You should've at least put on some decent clothes, for God's sake!", James says, pulling off his jacket and draping it around my shoulders.

As I finally lift my eyes and look up at him, for the second time that night, I feel my breath hitch in my throat in awe. As the moonlight shines on him, James's tanned skin glows in such a manner that seems surreal. Unable to tear my gaze away from his face, I watch as his worry-filled hazel-eyes bear into my own, filling my heart with indescribable warmth. As I continue to stare at James, I feel like there is something astoundingly similar between him and the stag. _Loyalty, noble, radiating warmth…_

Shaking myself mentally for the umpteenth time, I try and rid myself of the ridiculous thoughts. _Honestly, I am comparing a human and an animal! It's about time I went to a psychiatrist._

"Did you see it too?", I ask, before I can help myself. Seeing James's confused expression, I get my answer. Still, I find it unfair to leave him in suspense and therefore, reply to his questioning gaze. "A stag"

"A stag? Here in the city? I really don't think…Lily, are you sure you – "

" – that I saw it? Of course I'm sure. It's not something that I would randomly start imagining about. I saw it as clearly as I am seeing you right now. In fact, I talked with it too and – I _know _it sounds crazy, but it's true, I swear – it responded to my questions." I say honestly.

"Responded to your questions? What, did it start talking in English or something? I think you need some sleep, Evans. You're losing your mind!", James says, amusement sparkling in his eyes.

"I am _not _losing my mind!" I say irately, "You wouldn't be saying all these things if you saw him too. Merlin James, I dunno how to explain this, but it was better than just some mere imagination. It was the most handsome creature I've ever seen. Magnificent, royal, noble, majestic…it was better than _perfect_, I tell you"

Hopefully searching James's face for signs that show he believes me, I become confused as an odd gleam passes through his eyes and I see him struggling to not grin like a maniac. _What's so funny?_

"All right, all right! I believe you", he says finally, regaining his cool demeanor.

"You do?"

"Mmhmm"

Suspiciously, I narrow my eyes and look for any signs of teasing or lying on his face. When I find no trace of deception, I give him a satisfied smile which he returns with one of his own.

Suddenly realizing that he's out on the street even though _he _hadn't been following the stag, I ask after a few moments, "What are _you _doing out here, by the way?", raising an eyebrow.

Without replying to my question, James stuffs his hands into his pockets before turning on his heel and strutting back to our front porch. _Huh? What on earth was that about?_ Confused as hell, I jog a few steps to catch up with him in the front of the house before reaching out a hand and grabbing his arm.

As he turns around with a curious look on his face, my confusion grows and I frown. _Why is he behaving so weirdly? _

"Why aren't you replying to my question?", I ask him after he doesn't make even an attempt to defend himself against my questioning gaze.

"Question? What question?", James asks innocently. _**Too**__ innocently, in fact_…

"Why are you out here, at this time of the night?", I ask through clenched teeth, losing my patience

"I was out for a nighttime stroll"

That is when I realize that the reason he walked away from me was because he was buying time to make-up lies to answer my question with. _Well, too bad, that was a __**horrible **__excuse. 'Nighttime stroll'? __**Honestly, **__James?_

"Stop lying. Your excuse was absolutely pathetic", I say fixing him with a glare.

James sighs and his shoulders sag before he drops his head and replies, "_Fine,_you win! I just came back from home"

"Home? You mean, _your _home?", I ask. As soon as I say it, I realize how dumb it sounds, even to my own ears. _Obviously __**his**__ home, you dolt! _

As James nods his head, I ask, "Why?"

"I forgot to bring my broomstick and I couldn't leave it back there now, could I?", he replies, smirking a little. _Typical._

As I roll my eyes at his James Potter-ish behavior, some scars running down his arm falls in my line of vision. Impulsively, I grab his hand gently run my fingers over them – _And I __**do not **__notice how warm and nice his callused hand feels in my own. So there. _"What happened?", I whisper, slightly frowning at the fresh wounds.

Feeling James slightly shiver under my touch, I drop his hand and take a step back, slightly red in the face. "Uh…um…I fell down from my broomstick while I was trying to escape from the window. Considering that I landed on some prickly plant, I think the scars are self-explanatory"

"Fell down from the broomstick?", I ask horrified. _How is he still able to walk?_

"My my, Evans! If I didn't know any better, I would think that you are actually _concerned_ about my health", James says, smirking really wide.

Going embarrassingly red in the face, I splutter out, "In your dreams, Potter", before turning on my heel and starting to make my way inside the house. As I barely manage to take a single step, James grabs my hand and pulls me toward him in such a manner that my body slams against his. Wrapping an arm around my waist to make sure I don't run away – _Highly unlikely right now – _he stares at me with so much intensity in his eyes that my legs glue themselves to the spot anyway.

"I'm sorry, Lily. But can I ask you something?", James whispers, his breath hot on my face.

"What?", I ask, unable to take my eyes off of his.

"I don't know if you have noticed it, but I have tried changing myself over the years so much, Lily! And I'm pretty sure I've succeeded to a certain amount too. I've tried _everything _in my capacity to change. For _you, _Lily. _You _made me realize how wrong my behavior was. After that incident during fifth year OWLs, I have constantly tried to prove myself to you; to prove that I'm not such a bad guy. The point is, I'm asking for a chance. A chance to show you that I have _indeed _changed, Lily. I've been here for an entire week and I can't tell you how much this means to me! But, I can't prove myself until you remove the image you have of me from your mind. So I _need _to know – can you give me that chance?"

I stare at James, dumb-struck and speechless. _What are the odds that he can read my mind? What are the odds that he would be asking me about the __**same **__thing that was corrupting my thoughts a few minutes ago? _As these questions run through my mind, thousands more thoughts join it, squashing the previous ones to the back of my brain – _Maybe he __**has **__changed. Maybe it's about time that I gave him a chance. Maybe I __**should **__give him a chance…he has earned it. Yes…I __**will **__give him a chance._

"Merlin, Lily! I just ruined everything didn't I?", James says, letting go of me, "I am _so _sorry. I shouldn't've…_shit! _It's okay…you don't have to reply. Please don't start ignoring me, though. If you want, I'll just leave and we can pretend none of this happened". With that, he starts to turn around and leave, leaving me to grasp everything he just said.

_He thinks I'm not replying 'cause I don't __**want **__to give him a chance. _

Realizing that I was _still _not saying anything, I shout to his retreating back, "Wait! James!"

As he swiftly turns around with an odd look on his face, I give him a small smile and offer my hand for him to shake before saying, "Friends?"

Carefully reading his expressions, I notice as the look in his eyes changes from surprise to happiness to a little bit disappointment and finally settles with satisfaction. _I don't think I even need to wonder what that is about._

"I think I can live with that", James says with a _really _wide grin on his face as he takes my hand and shakes it.

As I am about to open my mouth to reply, he envelopes me into a hug again, successfully drowning me in his scent and making my brain go fuzzy. "I think friends are allowed to hug", he whispers into my hair and I decide to let it pass. _Just this one time, Lily!_

A few moments later, after I break away from him, I say, "Good night, James", and walk inside the house, faintly hearing a "G'night, Lily", in response.

As I climb the stairs and make my way into my bedroom, I can't help as a small smile spreads across my face. Remembering James's huge grin after my offer, I realize that any doubt I had about James _not _changing, had dissipated from my mind the moment he hugged me after saving me from that car.

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **I know! I know! I posted this chapter a little late. But as I said, I can't guarantee my updating times any more, what with the amount of schoolwork being dumped on me. Anyway, _James and Lily are friends! _Woohoo..! And while we all know that that's not what we want, it's always exciting to read/ write – in my case about it. So, next chapter will be up as soon as I finish. Love everyone for the response I'm getting. Let them come!

Claudia :)


	13. James the Chef

**Summer Surprise**

**James the Chef**

* * *

As the rays of the sun fall on my eyes, I turn on my side and block the light from blinding me. Yawning, I slowly open my eyes before blinking a few times, bringing my bedroom into focus. After days of pining for the strawberries and chocolate frogs in my dreams, I finally reached the pile and gobbled down the food. _Ahh…it was blissful!_

Wondering why the world wasn't conspiring against me and trying to break my sleep, I glance at the clock and almost fall from the bed in surprise when I see '7:00 a.m.' staring back at me. _Whoa! That's a record! Especially considering that I went to bed at 3:30 last night!...last night…_

And then everything comes rushing back to me – James's and mine new found friendship. Smiling to myself as I remember the previous night's 'adventure', I get up from bed and make my way across the hall and into the bathroom.

After brushing my teeth and taking a shower, I step out of the bathtub and wrap myself in a towel – _making sure it's – ahem – tight this time. _Combing my bunch of crimson wire, I tie it into a high ponytail after magically drying it. With the small smile still adorning my face, I return to my room and put on a pair of jeans and a green shirt.

Just as I finish applying my regular dose of make-up, I hear a soft tapping noise on my window. Turning around, I find Muffin, Mary McDonald's brown and tiny owl blinking back at me with a letter attached to its small legs.

Hopping up from my chair in front of the mirror, I walk over to the window before letting muffin in and offering him an owl treat as I untie the letter and scan through my best friend's message…

_Lily Marie Evans,_

_You are __**so **__dead._

_Yes, you read that right. Do you know how angry I am at you for not sending me a letter since the summer started? Yeah, yeah, I know I told you that writing letters to me while I am in Paris would be a bad idea and all that, but it is your duty as a best friend to send them anyway! You should thank your lucky stars that I love you so much and therefore, I am ready to forgive you if you get me a pack of Bertie botts on our first hogsmeade trip. I know, I am amazing!_

_Anyway, I need to tell you that Paris is absolutely gorgeous. And when I say 'gorgeous', I don't just mean the place and food…I mean guys! Merlin, Lily, you should see the men here…they are so hot! Oh wait, who am I saying this to? The girl who is crazy enough to be refusing James Potter for the past four years? I think I'm just wasting my time._

_Seriously honey, you need to get your brain checked. That bloke is an absolute piece of art! In fact, the only guy in school who is anywhere nearly as good-looking as him is Sirius Black. And while I'd rather eat a hippogriff before dating Black, James isn't so bad. I wish he would ask __**me **__out…but he's been practically worshipping the ground you walk on since third year. And no matter how much you deny it, I know you love it!_

_Now that I'm done with my 'getting Lily Evans and James Potter together' dose, tell me what's going on with you. Anything interesting? Any hot guys moved in as your neighbor? How are Petunia and the Walrus doing? _

_You better reply fast,_

_Your absolutely stunning best friend,_

_Mary_

* * *

Chuckling at my crazy friend's craziness, I walk over to my desk by the window before pulling out a piece of parchment and a quill to write down a response…

_Dear Mary,_

_If I remember correctly, your exact words on the platform were, 'Don't bother writing to me, Lils. I probably won't even have time to read them amidst of trying to get away from all the guys who will be throwing themselves at me'. So you can't really blame me. But being the amazing friend I am, I am ready to buy you a pack of Bertie botts._

_Answering your question and ignoring your 'speech' about James Potter, would like to tell you that a lot of interesting stuff __**did **__happen in the past week. Speaking about Potter, you will die of shock when I tell you that Potter is living with me in my house right now. Are you dead yet?_

_Assuming that you're not, I also want to tell you that I am not going to give you any more details. You know how I hate writing such stuff in letters. So…lock your questions in a box and wait till September the first to unleash them. I know…you probably want to kill me right now! But I also know that you love me (yup…I am smirking right now)._

_Your smart and witty bf,_

_Lily_

Sealing the letter in an envelope, I tie it to Muffin's legs before opening the window again and letting him fly out.

* * *

A few minutes later, I quietly make my way down the stairs – _seeing as no one has woken up yet – _and enter the kitchen to make my breakfast. I open the refrigerator and take out some eggs and cheese, deciding to prepare an omelet. While the egg fries on the pan, I take out a carton of orange juice from the fridge and pour it into a glass. As I lean against the counter and take a sip of the juice, I hear the front door open and then close. _Who was out so early in the morning?_

Fearing an intruder, I pull out my wand from the pocket of my jeans and tiptoe towards the living room to solve the mystery. As I poke my head inside the room, my eyes widen and my heart starts palpitating rapidly. _Oh Merlin!_

I see James standing in the middle of the room, facing the other direction in a sweat laden shirt and gasp silently as he takes off his shirt to reveal his toned and muscular body. My hormones go crazy as a drop of sweat slides down his back and I gulp while licking my lips, desperately trying to get rid of the dryness in my mouth.

Almost as if he feels my eyes on him, James spins around and looks at me. I watch with an extremely red face as he smirks and picks up his hand and reaches towards his messy hair – _which does not lay flat __**even though **__it's wet! Merlin, what's it made up of? – _before deciding against it and dropping it to his side.

Trying to find anything to distract my eyes from watching his muscles tighten with every movement, I decide to stare at the floor instead, while saying, "You're up early. Where were you?"

I can almost feel the smirk in his voice as he replies, "I am _always _up early and I _always _go jogging. It's _you _who's noticed it the first time"

Feeling annoyed with his teasing, I dare to look up at him, making sure my eyes don't stray too long at his toned chest and say, "You're just abnormal. I mean, who wakes up so early in the summer to _work out?_"

"People who want to stay fit, I guess", he replies simply

"Are you trying to imply that I'm not fit?", I ask, narrowing my eyes at him.

"_Trust _me when I say that I _was not _trying to imply that", James says, his eyes scanning me up and down.

Blushing even harder, – _is that even possible?_ – I try to come up with a reply to his comment but other than feeling flustered, I can't seem to find any other response. Luckily, I am saved from having to say anything as James frowns and sniffs the air before saying, "do you smell something…burning?"

My eyes widen in horror as I realize _what _is burning. _Oh shit. _

"My omelet", I shriek, before running out of the room and racing into the kitchen.

Quickly, I turn off the gas and despairingly look down at my supposed 'omelet'. As the blackened piece of food looks back at me, I sigh sadly and sit down on the kitchen counter.

"Hey, what's wrong?", James asks from behind me, making me jump a foot in the air.

"Merlin, James. You scared me", I say. As he grins sheepishly, I continue, "My breakfast just died"

"Died?", he asks with amusement in his voice. As I nod my head towards the pan on the stove, he peers down at it before nodding his head seriously and replying, "Yup. That's a dead breakfast if I've ever seen one".

I can't help but chortle at his comment and look up to see him doing the same. I sigh sadly again as my empty stomach grumbles loudly. "I'm hungry", I whine.

"You could always make another one you know. Or have something else", James suggests.

"I feel like having something grand, unlike cereal or toast. And I don't wanna start all over again", I say hanging my head down again.

"I'll make you something, then"

My head snaps up and I blink a few times at James before losing it and laughing my head off. "You…make…breakfast?", I manage to gasp out between guffaws.

"Yes. And why not?", he asks indignantly

After managing to get a hold of myself, I reply, "Oh, I dunno. I just thought that since you probably have thousands of house-elves running around behind you to make your breakfast, you wouldn't even know how to distinguish between ingredients. And the fact that everything we have here is muggle, doesn't help your case"

"You don't have to worry about that", he says shrugging. As I raise my eyebrows at him, he adds, "Okay, let's make a deal – If it turns out be a disaster, you get whatever you want. But if it blows you away, _I _get whatever I want".

_Hmm…fair enough!_

"Alright. Let's see it then", I respond before adding, "But first, go take a shower and put some clothes on"

"Why? Is it distracting you?", James asks smugly

I roll my eyes at him, trying my best to not show how right he is, and say, "In your dreams, Potter. Now go"

* * *

Around twenty minutes later, James returns to the kitchen – _thankfully – _clothed in a pair of beige pants and a black shirt. As he opens the refrigerator and take out eggs and all sorts of ingredients, I ask, "You're making an omelet right?"

He nods his head in response and says, "Not just any old omelet. It's the best one in the world"

"So modest", I mutter and James chuckles quietly.

_Wow! He's so concentrated_, I wonder, watching James fry the eggs and add ingredients that I don't even bother looking at while _I _cook. As he adds the grated cheese in the pan, I can't help but appreciate how well we are getting together as friends. Smiling to myself, I jump off of the counter and walk over next to James.

"Almost done?"

"Almost", he replies looking up at me.

"I must admit that it smells good", I say. And it does too. As if on cue, my stomach grumbles with anticipation and the both of us laugh simultaneously.

"Alright! Here you go", James says, pushing a plate towards me and offering me a fork.

I take it from him and cut a small piece of the omelet before popping it into my mouth. _Freaking hell! This is bloody amazing!_

"Well?", James prods me, an anxious look on his face.

"You know what, Potter? You make a decent chef. It blew me away", I reply smiling at him.

I chuckle as James does a victory dance and then joins me in the dining table to eat his share of the omelet. After our plates become completely devoid of any morsel of food, James looks me in the eye and grins evilly before saying, "So, Lily…about that deal…want to know what I have in mind?"

Noticing the mischievous look in his eyes, I suddenly start regretting agreeing to the deal. But instead, I confidently reply, "You're going to tell me regardless of what I want"

"True", James says, grinning. "I want you to go flying with me"

"WHAT?", I shriek, getting up from the chair. _No, no, no, NO! This is not happening!_

"You heard me. We are going flying", he replies firmly

_I can't believe my ears! I have never ridden a broom ever since the class in first year. I just can't believe James is going to make me do this!_

I sigh heavily before saying, "Fine. But because I'm letting you do the thing I hate doing the most, you'll also have to do something for me in return"

"Anything for you, Lily. What do I have to do?"

"You'll see", I say mysteriously before turning on my heel and leaving the kitchen.

As I reach the first floor landing, James shouts out, "Hey, that's not fair! I told you what you have to do. I think it's only fair that you tell me as well". He catches up with me and looks at me expectantly.

"Nuh-uh! No can do! Sorry! If you are going to blackmail me into riding broomsticks, – which you very well know I hate doing – I think it's _completely _fair for me to keep my plan as suspense. Other than that, the fact that you're pretending to be my bo – "

–_y friend is bad enough, and I don't need you to be blackmailing me anymore! _Is what I was about to say before James stopped my ranting by cupping my check in his hand and closing the gap between us.

My eyes immediately flutter close and I wrap my arms around him, bringing him closer to me. As his hand leaves my face and settles on the small of my back, I slightly open my mouth, allowing entrance to his pleading tongue.

Going extremely dizzy from pleasure and lack of oxygen, my hands grip the collar of James's shirt as I fight to keep standing. Finally, the two of us break away, breathing heavily and flushed in the face. Looking up at him, I see James's eyes sparkling gleefully even as he whispers in an emotionless voice, "What were you doing? Petunia is just in the next room! She could've easily heard you"

"Oh. Right! Sorry!", I reply meekly. _Shit. What __**was **__I thinking? I need to be more careful._

I clear my throat, trying to get rid of the awkward atmosphere and say, "So…when do you plan to take me for the flying session?"

"Aha…so you're excited?", James asks hopefully

I roll my eyes before sarcastically replying, "Duh! Didn't you know it was my life's ambition to not ride on a flying broomstick for the first sixteen years of my life and then get blackmailed by James Potter into riding one because he made me an omelet? C'mon…I think that was obvious"

"Har-har-har, Lily. You're hilarious", James says dryly before adding in a _much _more excited tone, "We could go at 11:00, if that's okay with you"

"Sure", I say, trying to sound nonchalant when in fact, I was already starting to dread the number 11 like hell.

_Yep…I __**definitely **__regret making that deal with him. For future references– __**Never **__make a deal with James Potter again._

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **You guys probably hate me for making you wait so much but I hope you understand that I am practically dying right now. Anyway, I hope I didn't make this chapter too boring but I thought that their newly found friendship deserved a few chapters before Lily realizes everything is not right. So for a few more chapters you'll have to bear with the 'friendship' thing. Please write reviews guys…I really love them

Claudia :)


	14. The Flying Frenzy

**Summer Surprise**

**The Flying Frenzy**

* * *

As the clock strikes eleven, someone knocks on the door of my bedroom. Putting down_ Pride and Prejudice, _I get up from the bed and walk over to the door before opening it and revealing James. I roll my eyes as his beaming face falls a little as he scans me up and down and notices my outfit.

_Okay…so __**maybe **__I changed into my pajamas just so I could waste time and delay going flying with him. Just __**maybe**__._

"Lily!", James whines

"What?", I ask innocently.

"Why are you in your pajamas? It's almost afternoon"

"Oh you know how I love sleep. I thought that maybe if I didn't change at all, I could go back to sleep. I'm _so _tired…you know how I woke up early today, right?", I say, trying to make him feel guilty about wanting to take me flying.

Unfortunately, it doesn't work. "Your tricks won't work here, Lily. If you remember, I already saw you in jeans this morning. So…I know that you changed back into pajamas so you don't have to go flying", James says exasperatedly

_Shit. He's too observant for his own good. Damn James Potter and his observation skills. Okay…do not panic Lily – Plan B…_

"James, _please. _Pretty please? Can I _not _go flying?", I ask, putting on my best puppy-dog expression and pouting a little. _Ha! Who can resist that? __**Certainly **__not James…right?_

I watch hopefully as James seems to consider my request. As a determined look sets in his eyes, I feel my heart drop and know the answer even before he replies, "No. You can_not _break the deal. You _have _to come. Now dress up fast or I'll carry you outside dressed in your PJs itself"

Dropping my pleading expression, I narrow my eyes at him and fix him with a glare before walking towards my cupboard and fishing out a pair of denim shorts and a tank top. As I walk past James while heading towards the bathroom, I throw a menacing look at his smirking face and say, "You, James Potter, are an evil, pig-headed, blackmailing guy".

I hear James chortle and say, "I know" as I leave the room and walk towards the bathroom with growing apprehension of the future. _I hate my life! Or at least the almighty power __**controlling**__ my life hates me._

* * *

"There you are!", James says, as I make my way downstairs and into the living room after 10 minutes.

Seeing James with a Cleensweep and a Nimbus – _don't ask me the exact model, I have no bloody idea – _held under his arm and an excited expression on his face, I roll my eyes at him. _Typical. It's like __**he's **__the one flying for the first time in five years._

"Yes, I'm here. Seeing that you left me no other choice", I snap at him

"Aw, c'mon, Lily…don't be a spoil-sport", James says with a smirk. _Maybe I should stop mentioning the smirk…it's a part of his face._

"I'm not a spoil-sport", I say indignantly

"Yeah, and I have antlers growing out of my head", James says sarcastically with a smile on his face which makes me feel like he's sharing a personal joke with himself. _Odd._

"Whatever. Let's just get this over with, can we?", I ask him, holding out my hand for the broomstick.

As he places the Cleensweep in my hand, I ask him, "Where exactly are we going? We can't really start flying on broomsticks here you know. It's a muggle neighborhood…they might find it a _tad_ bit weird"

"No! Really? I never knew that! Wow, Lils, you're so smart", James says, rolling his eyes at me.

"I _told _you to not call me 'Lils' _and _you're not answering my question", I say pointedly

"If I remember correctly, you said only your parents and close friends call you that. So technically, now that we're friends, I think I have a right to call you that, _Lils. _And answering you're question; I have a perfect place in mind…you'll just have to wait and see", James replies proudly

"Fine. So how are we getting to this place which I don't have any clue about and have to wait and see?", I ask him, placing one hand on my hip and pretending I didn't catch the fact that he called himself my close friend.

_But __**are **__we close friends? Nah…but, I __**do **__enjoy his company…Argh! I dunno! Darn it! _

"To get there, you need to take my arm", James says, breaking me out of my reverie and holding out his arm.

"Take your arm? Why?", I ask, gazing at James with a confused expression.

"We're doing a side-along apparition"

"Huh? Why? I can apparate, you know", I point out to him.

James sighs and shakes his head disappointedly at me before saying, "Never knew you were so slow, Evans. Isn't it obvious? You can't apparate 'cause you don't know where we're going. So you have to hold on to me so that I can apparate us there"

_Oh. It __**is **__pretty obvious. Can't let him know that though._

"Geez, I can't help it if you get all sorts of weird ideas. How on earth am I supposed to figure out how your mind works?" I say, and seeing him open his mouth to – _undoubtedly – _come up with a witty remark, I quickly add, "Now let's go otherwise I may change my mind"

Hearing that, James quickly shuts his mouth – _YES!_ – and offers his arm to me again. As I hold onto him lightly, James looks down at me with a raised eyebrow and says, "You've never done a side-along apparition before, have you?"

"No. I never had to. But how did you guess?", I ask curiously, noticing the flecks of green in his hazel eyes once again. _Merlin, they're so entrancing…WAIT! Who is corrupting my brain? I need to stop having these thoughts!_

"It wasn't really difficult. You see, if you _had _had experience with side-along apparition, you wouldn't be holding onto my arm so lightly. Instead, you would've been clutching me like this", James says before tightly wrapping his arm around me and causing me to gasp a little in surprise.

After he grabs his broomstick in his other hand, I notice the amusement in his eyes – _git – _before his expression screws up in concentration and I feel the familiar and uncomfortable jolt of apparition.

As we turn on the spot and apparate with the usual _pop_, I feel immensely grateful to James for holding me so tightly before leaving. _Side-along apparition officially __**sucks**_**.**

* * *

Feeling my feet hit the ground, I open my eyes and find myself staring into James's – _okay, I admit it – _extremely handsome face. As I feel myself growing uncomfortable from the close proximity and corrupting thoughts, I promptly wriggle out from his grasp and turn to look around.

"Wow!", I whisper involuntarily, seeing my surroundings. We were standing in the middle of a huge field that was surrounded by pine trees on all sides and seemed to be clear of muggles whatsoever. _Hell! It was clear of __**any **__human being apart from us._

As the cool air whips across my face, I close my eyes and inhale deeply, breathing in the fresh atmosphere. _Hmm…this scent seems familiar. I'm sure I've smelt it before…but whe – _

My eyes snap open as I realize exactly _what _or _who _smells somewhat like that. _  
_

As I turn around to look at James, I find him smiling at me with a satisfied look on his face. "You like it here?", he asks, though it seems more like a statement than a question.

I nod in response and can't help as the next words tumble out of my mouth. "You come here often, right? Where is this place?"

"Um…yeah…I come here almost every day. In fact, I come here to jog in the morning. It's just a field near my house that I found when I was thirteen. How did you figure out that I come here, though? I don't remember mentioning it to you", James asks curiously.

_I know because you smell like pines. Aren't I just amazing?_

I mentally kick myself for my stupidity and wrack my brains with the speed of lightning, looking for an excuse that wouldn't prove just _how much _of an idiot I am.

"I just guessed…'cause, um…I remembered the way you said you knew the perfect place. So I figured you must know it well to be aware that muggles don't come here", I explain, internally patting myself on the back for my quick thinking abilities.

"Oh. I didn't know it was that obvious", James says and I nod my head. "Anyway, let's get some flying done now, shall we?"

As he pulls out his broom in front of him and mounts it, I feel my heart beating rapidly in my rib cage. _Merlin, I can't do this!_

"C'mon, Lils. You can do this", James says, almost like he reads my thoughts. I stop myself from shuddering at the idea of something like that actually happening and instead, focus on the broom in my hand.

James smiles and his eyes sparkle with enthusiasm as I copy his actions and mount the broom too. "Great! Now all you have to do is kick-off from the ground and hover in the air for a bit. Like this..", he says, before gracefully taking off from the ground and stopping after reaching a few inches above my head.

Sighing very heavily, I kick-off from the ground and stop myself from squealing like a bimbo as I manage to join James in mid-air._ Wow…that was actually easy._

"There you go! Now, to go forward, you need to lean a bit on your broom. To turn left or right, just lean a bit in that direction while turning your broom. Savvy?" he asks me.

I nod my head and then lean forward on my broom before flying forwards. As the air whips across my face, I revel in the feeling of freedom and carefreeness.

After two or three hours, I find myself flying around the field without any of the previous anxiousness inside me. Breathing in the scent of pines, I enjoy the feeling of calmness that has settled over me in the past hour. Turning around to look at James, I find him smiling towards me before he flies downwards.

As James swiftly lands on the ground, I try and follow his actions, managing to reach the ground safely, though admittedly, not as elegantly.

"So, are we heading home, then?", I ask

James shakes his head and replies, "Not yet, no. First, you are going to enjoy _real _flying. _Then, _we can go home"

"Huh? Real flying?", I ask him, raising an eyebrow.

In response, James mounts his broom again and scoots forward, leaving some space behind him. As he nods his head towards the empty room behind, smirking, my eyes widen and I realize what he is hinting at.

"Never in a thousand years, Potter. I am NOT sitting there!", I say determinedly

* * *

As I mount the broom and sit behind James, I mumble 'blackmailer' through clenched teeth and he chuckles lightly. _Prat!_

"I'd suggest you hold on tight if you don't fancy falling off", James says, turning to look at me.

I gulp, wondering why I was feeling more nervous sitting here than I did when I was mounting the broom a few hours ago – _Oh who am I kidding? I am __**supposed **__to feel more nervous. It's James Potter, for merlin's sake!_

As I awkwardly and lightly wrap my arms around his torso, James sighs before saying, "Don't say I didn't warn you before". With that, he shoots upwards with the speed of light, earning a screech of surprise from me.

"Merlin, Lils. I think you just tore an ear-drum there", I hear James shout through the loud wind. But I can't be too sure, seeing that I have my arms wrapped around him in a death grip and my face is buried in his back, eyes tightly shut.

"C'mon, lily! As much as I love you wrapping yourself around me, you're missing out on the fun. Look around you!", James shouts again.

Even though I blush a little at his comment, I rapidly shake my head – _that is still buried in his shirt, which smells amazing, mind you – _and mumble, "too fast. I won't look up"

I almost _feel _James roll his eyes before he slows down a little and says, "There. Happy now?". As I slowly nod my head, he pleads, "Then look up now, please". Releasing a shaky breath, I reluctantly lift my head and open my eyes to take in my surroundings.

"Merlin, it's…its _beautiful!_" I whisper, as I watch the pine trees below fly past us and notice the sky turning a light shade of orange – _how long have we been gone? _A small smile spreads across my face as I feel the peace and serenity around me.

"It is", I hear James whisper back. I glance at him to find him staring at me with a small smile on his face too.

As I look into his eyes, I can't help but get the same feeling I got last night when he saved me from getting run over by that car. _Noble, Loyal and Brave. _Suddenly, it seems like a very stupid idea that I thought that I would be in danger with James around. Because I couldn't deny it in a million years that he would never hurt me.

* * *

After about an hour later, we apparate back home, broomsticks in hand. As James starts to make his way inside the house, I reach out and grab his arm, making him turn around to look at me.

"I enjoyed a lot today. Thanks, James", I say honestly

As he smiles and says, "Anytime", I respond with a smile of my own

"So", James starts and I chuckle internally, realizing that the sincere atmosphere was getting too much for him, "do I get to know what you have in mind for your part of the deal, _now_?

I smirk and reply, "Nope. As I said, you'll have to wait and see. We'll go tomorrow"

"Tomorrow?", James says, feigning shock. "I won't be able to sleep tonight from curiosity".

"Well, too bad for you", I say before laughing and walking inside the house.

After I hand the Cleensweep to James and reach my bedroom, flopping down on my stomach, I close my eyes and replay the day's events in my mind.

Sighing in contentment, I turn around and face the ceiling, coming up with a conclusion in my brain…_Maybe James and I __**are **__close friends._

With that thought in my mind, I close my eyes and drift off to sleep, the tiredness from the day's excitement finally taking its toll.

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Hey Potterheads! I swear I wrote this whenever I got time and tried finishing it as soon as I could. Still, sorry for updating a bit late. So, tell me what you think about this chapter, guys! Thanks for all the reviews by the way. And I solemnly swear that I will try to update ASAP. Love you all…

Claudia


	15. Hate the Suspense

**Summer Surprise**

**Hate the Suspense**

* * *

"Lily! Wake up!"

I groan and turn over to block the sound of Petunia's voice.

"Seriously, Lily!", Petunia says in an annoyed voice. "How much could you sleep?"

"I don't sleep _that _much", I mumble into my pillow

"Yes you do. You probably sleep for 20 hours every day. Now, get up! Mum says dinner's ready. You didn't even wait for food before going to sleep", Petunia snaps before her bony fingers start attacking me.

"Ow! Stop! I'm up! I'm up"

Scowling and cursing my sister under my breath, I reluctantly sit up on my bed and groggily rub my eyes. As I turn towards Petunia, planning on sending a death-glare towards her, I realize that my room is completely dark and the only light coming is from the starry night outside the window.

"Why do you hate me so much, Tuney?", I suddenly ask, surprising even myself. _Well, now's a time as good as any to find out, _I decide, waiting for her reply.

After a few moments of silence, I feel the bed sinking a little, indicating Petunia situating herself there, before her voice replies in the darkness, "You know we can never go back to being like we were before, right?"

"Yeah", I reply sadly, "But I just want to know. It's not really my fault I am witch, you know!"

"How many times do I have to tell you to not use that word", Petunia says, her voice raspy. "This is _exactly _why, Lily! You don't even _try _to change"

I slightly wince at her tone before replying quietly, "Why would I try to change, Petunia? This is who I am and I am proud of it. I don't _want _to change"

"Then why bother asking me a question whose answer is so blatantly clear?"

I sigh and shake my head before a sudden thought pops into my mind. _Maybe if I…but would she agree?...Oh, who cares…its worth a try! _

"Listen, maybe we could make a deal", I start, hoping she would agree with the peace treaty, "let's say I try my best to not bring up anything remotely related to magic or even _pretended _it doesn't exist, for your sake! Would you at least try to be a bit more civil to me, _then?_"

As an eternity of silence stretches across the room, I can almost sense the raging internal battle Petunia is experiencing. On one hand, agreeing to the deal would mean agreeing with _me – which she obviously didn't want – _but on the other hand, an option of having a 'normal sister' must be extremely tempting for her.

"Fine. Deal", Petunia says and I can't help but grin at her response.

As the bed lifts again, signaling Petunia's departure, I follow suit and get up from the bed before the lights to my room are mercilessly turned on, bringing water to my eyes. "Petunia! What are you doing?", I say, trying to block the light by shielding it with my arm.

"Oh. Oops! But on second thoughts, you had to come down anyway. So I don't see why the lights are that much of a problem", I hear Petunia say before she skips out of the room, shaking her bony hips deliberately.

I roll my eyes at her retreating back - _that's Petunia being __**civil**__, Lily! – _before tying my hair into a messy bun and walking out of the room myself.

* * *

I wrinkle my nose as I watch Petunia munching on flavorless salad – _including broccoli. Ew – _and avert my eyes from the disturbing scene before me. As I concentrate on the mashed potatoes and roasted chicken on the plate before me, I can't for the life of me figure out how a person could survive without such delicacies.

While I hungrily gobble down my food, I feel something on my left hand and almost bite my tongue to stop myself from screaming in surprise. Trying my best to go unnoticed, I glance under the table to find a large and warm hand on top of mine. As I turn my head towards James, I find him smiling at me before he mouths something like, 'Need to talk'.

Promptly ignoring the weird fluttering in my chest, I barely nod my head at him, seeing which he removes his hand from mine. I internally sigh with disappointment at the loss of warmth that was radiating from James's hand. _Shit! Again with those thoughts! Get a grip on yourself, Lily!_

After dinner, I collect all the plates from the table and carry them towards the sink – _My turn to do the dishes today! Ugh – _before dipping the sponge in soap water and picking up the first plate.

"You _do _know that you're a witch who's allowed to do magic outside school, don't you?"

I almost drop my plate in surprise at the sound of James's voice and turn around to fix him with a glare, sponge in hand. "Yes I do, thank you very much. But I just like having some muggle balance to my life as well. Besides, I don't think Petunia would ever eat in these plates again if I used magic to clean them."

I turn around and continue cleaning the dishes before James comes and positions himself beside me. "Um…Lily? Do you mind if I ask you a question?"

I sigh, already knowing his question. "Why don't I and Petunia get along?"

James nods at me in reply before saying, "Yeah. I mean, I know it's not my business or anything and I completely understand if you don't wanna tell me. But, it's just that I am incredibly curious as to what could have led Lily Evans to lie that James Potter is her boyfriend"

Pushing the unexpected guilt at his joking yet slightly sad tone to the back of my mind, I reply, "Petunia and I were not always like this, you know. We were like best friends". Seeing James's 'go-on' gesture, I pick up another plate before continuing, "_until, _I got my letter to Hogwarts. Even though she'd never admit it, I know Tuney wanted to be a witch too. Hell, I think she still does! In fact, I caught her writing a letter to Dumbledore, begging him to accept her at Hogwarts"

Chuckling at the memory, I look at James before proceeding, "Of course Dumbledore couldn't do that. Merlin, I was so shocked to find out that he even got the letter! Let alone reply to it. But, he was really kind towards Petunia about the entire ordeal. Said how he was really sorry and all. But Petunia hated him for that, and the entire wizarding world for that matter, incuding me", I finish dejectedly

"So basically, Petunia was jealous?", James asks slowly

"Basically. Yeah. Though sometimes, I feel guilty about this whole thing. _Even _though I know I'm not supposed to. I mean, it's not like I could do anything about it. But I can't help but blame myself for the break in our friendship, sometimes", I say, looking down at my soap covered hands.

"Lily, listen to me", James says before placing his hands on my shoulder and turning me around to face him. As my green aliens lock into his warm, hazel orbs, I almost gasp at how much sincerity I find in them.

"Believe me when I say that you are _not _to blame for the drift between the two of you. If anything, it was the different mind-sets and attitudes the both of you have. I know for a fact that you're an amazing person, Lily and that you would never want to hurt anyone purposefully. So stop blaming yourself for what happened because according to me, _Petunia _should be the one to be sorry. Sorry because she lost your friendship."

I stare at James with my mouth slightly agape feeling my eyes well up slightly with tears. _Shit. I __**never **__cry. _Blinking rapidly, I immediately turn around before picking up the last dish and scrubbing it with the sponge.

"Thanks, James", I whisper after a few moments

"Anytime"

I smile slightly before asking, "So, what did you wanna talk about?"

"Oh, yeah! I almost forgot. Um, I was wondering that since you're not gonna tell me what we're doing tomorrow, how the hell am I supposed to prepare for it?"

I turn around – _again! – _with a confused expression on my face and the dripping wet sponge in my hand. "_Prepare? _What do you mean? It's not like we're going to a party so you have to buy an outfit or something"

"Exactly my point. _How _am I supposed to know what to do or what to bring. At least give me a hint as to where you're taking me", James replies with hopeful eyes.

"Nice try, Potter. But you're getting nothing out of me. My lips are sealed", I say, smirking

"Come _on_, Lils!", he whines. As I grin and shake my head, James narrows his eyes and advances towards me saying, "Tell me or I'll…I'll…Aha! I'll tickle you"

I gasp as he wraps his arm around me starts tickling my sides mercilessly. "James…stop!...please…STOP!", I manage to say between my laughter.

"Tell me what you're planning to do tomorrow and I'll stop. I promise"

"No…I won't. I swear…it's nothing…bad! Stop, _please"_

"Nuh-uh! Give in, Evans", James says grinning evilly.

"That's…_it! _You…asked for it!", I say before standing on my tiptoe and raising my hand above James's head and squeezing the soaking wet sponge on his hair.

"Bloody hell, Lily! Shit…my hair!", James says in a panic-filled voice while trying to assess the damage in his hair. I fall down on the floor, clutching my stomach and wiping my eyes while laughing my head off.

"Merlin, you're such a girl", I say, looking up at James's horrified face.

"I am _not. _You shouldn't have said that, you know", he says smirking. My eyes widen in apprehension as James walks over to the sink and grabs another wet sponge before turning back to look at me.

"_James"_, I say warningly "Don't you d – "

"AHHHH", I scream as I feel cold, soapy water trickle down my head. As I glance upwards at James, I find him throwing his head back and laughing at me. Going red in the face because of fury, I promptly grab his leg and pull him down with a _thud._

"Oof", James says, his face contorted in a scowl, "You're pretty strong for a girl"

"If you value your life Potter, you'll not go into _that _argument"

"I was merely complimenting you", he says with an innocent face. _Again, with the whole JP initials not going with innocence. _

"Whatever. The point is, you won't get me utter a single word until tomorrow, no matter _what _you do". And with that, I get up from the floor, only to slip on the soap covered tiles and fall on top of James, moments later.

_Merlin! Why me?_

As I get a full blast of the 'James scent', - _mixed with a bit of soap water this time – _all sensible thoughts get pushed to the back of my brain and I lose myself in those hazel depths. In fact, I don't even realize how compromising our situation looks like until mum walks into the kitchen.

"Lily? James? What are you – oh!", Mum says, looking down at us with a creepy smile on her face.

Blushing profusely, James and I pull ourselves off the floor and put a more socially acceptable distance between ourselves. "Mum…uh...we were…uh…just…", I trail off, unable to think of anything.

_We were just having a sponge war until I fell on top of James and promptly kicked all rational thoughts to the back of my mind? Nah…that may sound just __**tad **__bit weird._

"Honestly, honey. I don't blame either of you", Mum says, eyes sparkling with happiness. _She's probably thinking about our marriage so that she can legally call James her son, _I decide, sighing internally.

"But what I _do _want to know", she continues in a more stern voice, "is what in the name of god have you done to my kitchen! It looks a bomb blasted here…only a bomb of dish cleaner"

"I'm really sorry mum – ", I manage to say before James cuts me off and says, "It wasn't just Lily's fault Mrs. Evans; I had a fair share in the mess as well".

"Oh no, honey. You don't have to apologize. I totally understand", Mum says with a sickening sweet voice. I can't help but roll my eyes at her not-so-subtle show of partiality. Luckily, no one notices me. _Woohoo!_

"Atchoo!", I sneeze suddenly before realizing how cold I feel with all the soap water running down my clothes.

As I shiver involuntarily, I chance a glance at James and predictably, find a worried and guilty expression in his eyes. "I think I better go change", I say trying to escape his apology, which is sure to come any moment now.

"Yeah, honey, I think you should. James, you should change too. Or you are likely to get a cold too", mum says.

Nodding our heads, the two of us make our way upstairs and into the first floor landing before James grabs my wrist and turns me around to face him. I roll my eyes as he opens his mouth to speak before saying, "Please don't apologize" and watch him close his mouth shut. _Merlin, how predictable could you possibly get?_

"But Lils, you got a cold because of me", James argues, his eyes filled with guilt which makes my heart melt. _Only because I don't like someone becoming guilty because of me, you know! No other reason._

"Hey, I gave you a good amount of detergent for the night, too. I just have a weaker immune syst – Atchoo!", I sneeze again, covering my mouth with my hand - _Wouldn't want germs spreading, right?_ "So _stop _feeling guilty and let me go, otherwise I'm gonna fall sick and _that's _gonna be your fault", I tease James, smiling a little.

He sighs and drops my wrist before saying, "Fine. Go. But I still am sorry. You sure you're going to be okay?"

"Merlin, James! It's just a cold. I'm fine! Honestly! Now go to bed…goodnight!"

"Goodnight, Lily", James says smiling warmly at me.

I quickly return to my room before taking a shower and slipping into warm pajamas – _a loose t-shirt and sweat pants. I have totally given up on short outfits for obvious reasons. _As I turn off the lights and slipping under the covers, I realize that maybe Petunia had some truth in her accusation. _I do sleep, but not 20 hours! Only when I feel like it._

That's the last thought I have before I succumb into deep slumber for the night.

* * *

As the clock strikes four the next evening, I hear rapid knocking on my bedroom door. _Yep, you guessed right. I didn't tell James anything about my plans yet!_

Smiling to myself, I get up from my bed and walk across the room before opening the door and facing a _very _impatient James Potter. "There you go! It's four, for Merlin's sake. Can we go, _now?_"

"Yes we can. Just wait one more second", I say before leisurely walking over to my dresser and braiding my hair – _and taking my time doing it. I know I'm cruel._

"You're such a cruel person", James says, almost like he reads my mind _again._ "You're enjoying torturing me _way _more than necessary"

"Can't say I'm not", I reply, turning around to face him with a smirk on my face. 'It's quite entertaining to watch you being so impatient. You should try it sometime", I finish with a chuckle.

"Hardy-har, Lils. You're absolutely hilarious!", James says sarcastically.

"Alright! Alright! No need to be so sarcastic! Let's go. I'm ready", I barely manage to say before James grabs my arm and practically runs out of the room and down the stairs, pulling me along with him.

"Oi! Slow down! Let me grab a few bottles of water. We'll need it", I say before walking towards the refrigerator and fishing out two bottles and handing one to James.

"Since I know you're not going to answer me, I'm not even going to ask you why we'll need it", he says, taking the bottle from me.

"Smart choice", I say, chortling. "Now, do you plan on standing here all day or do you want to go?"

"Seeing that I don't know _where _to go, I think it's quite pointless what _I _plan on doing", James says accusingly. _Damn. Why does he always have to be right?_

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Now, hold on to me so we can apparate", I say meekly

As James wraps his arms around me, I must admit that it becomes increasingly difficult for me to concentrate on my destination. Finally forcing my mind to focus on something other than strong arms and their warmth, I manage to apparate us both with a resounding _pop._

As I look around at my surroundings, I mentally pat myself on the back for a successful side-along apparition. Walking towards the tall building in front of me, I notice the absence of James at my side. Turning around to look at the bloke in question, I find him skeptically eyeing the building. "_This? _We are going to a Sports Center? What the heck is that?"

"You'll find out when you come in, won't you." I reply, nodding my head towards the Center.

"I hate this suspense", I hear James mutter as he walks over to me and we make our way inside the building.

After showing Petunia's membership card to the receptionist – _Yes, I stole it! – _I lead James into one of the free courts. Looking around happily at my surroundings, I turn around to find a confused James glancing everywhere.

"Sorry, Lils. But I _still _don't know where we are"

"Of course you don't", I say smiling at him, "because Mr. Potter, we are at a basketball court"

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Before you guys kill me, I just want to say that I am already dead. Honestly! Homework has killed me. Anyway, I finally finished this chapter so woohoo! And yeah, Lily and James are gonna play basketball. Why? 'cause I love basketball and so does Lily. Thanks for all the reviews. You guys are awesome! Keep them coming.

Claudia


	16. I'm Game

**Summer Surprise**

**I'm Game**

* * *

"Basketball?", James asks with a raised eyebrow, "What in the name of Merlin's beard is that? Do you catch balls in a basket or something?"

I chuckle at his ignorance of the muggle world before saying, "No. It's the best game ever made. The best_ muggle _game", I add after seeing James open his mouth. _No doubt to argue that quidditch is the best game ever made. _

"So how exactly do you play this basket thing?", he asks, folding his arms across his chest.

I walk across the court and pick up a basketball from the corner before turning back and walking towards James while dribbling the ball. "You take _this _and shoot it through one of _those_", I reply, pointing to the baskets on either end of the court.

I watch as James slightly tilts his head to the side and stares at me, as if considering whether to believe me or not. I roll my eyes as at his cockiness when he finally says, "That's…_it?_ Psh…this sounds too easy, Evans"

"Well obviously there are a lot of rules. But, that's the gist of it. And trust me when I say that I'm not gonna let you win that easy", I say, challenging him.

"Well at least you admit that I'm gonna win", James retorts, smirking. _Damn, he's smart_

"Well played, Potter. Let's see if you'll have any of your pride left after I'm through with you"

"_Puh-lease, _Lils. I've never seen you play a single sport in all of the seven years I've known you. I'm in a much better state than you are"

"Just because I don't show-off while playing doesn't mean I _don't play. _And in any case, it's not like I would play basketball in Hogwarts now, would I?", I throw back wittily.

"I do _not _show off", James says to which I snort. "Well, maybe a bit. But so what? The point _here _is that I'm gonna beat you at this game. So you better be prepared for it. Now, tell me these rules of yours"

"Oh, right. The rules!", I exclaim, pushing our argument aside. _For the moment, at least. _"So there are some restrictions – "

Ten minutes later, James and I position ourselves in the middle of the court with the ball in between us. I glare at him in a challenging manner before saying, "Ready to lose, Potter?"

"You wish, _Evans!_", James replies. After a few more moments of staring at each other, we crack up and start chortling at our use of last names. In that moment it strikes me extremely odd that only a few days back, I was spitting James's last name out like venom in my mouth. But now it surprisingly sounds like we have nicknames for each other.

I clear my throat and regain my composure before saying, "So let's get this started, shall we?" As James nods his head in response, I say, "On the count of three – One! Two! THREE!", and throw the ball into the air, marking the start of the game.

I humph in frustration as James jumps up and grabs the ball, taking advantage of his height and dribbles across the court, towards the basket. I break into a run after him and within mere seconds, I manage to steal the ball from him and make my way in the opposite direction.

I swiftly jump up and flawlessly shoot the ball through the basket before turning around with a triumphant smile on my face. _Yes, that's right; I am amazing at basketball if I do say so myself._

I chuckle at James's wide-eyed expression and _surprisingly _blush a little when he says, "Wow…I…just wow, Lily! That was amazing!"

"Thanks", I mumble. Then add in a louder voice, "Well I did get a lot of practice over the years. I'm sure you'll get better at it."

"Well, _actually, _I was only taking it slow the last time because I didn't want you to get upset", James says, smirking a little.

I roll my eyes at his cocky attitude and say, "Yeah, you keep telling yourself that"

"I was not lying, sunshine", he says and hastily adds, "sorry, sorry, I forgot" as I send a withering glare towards him. I sigh and say, "Whatever. Let's play". And with that, we continue our game until –

"WOOHOO! What did I tell you, Evans?", James shouts while doing a victory jig after his – _admittedly – _impressive dunk. "Wait", he says suddenly, stopping his dance, "That was allowed wasn't it? What I did was allowed, right?", he asks with hopefulness in his eyes.

For a moment, I feel like lying and telling him that it wasn't allowed and that he didn't score – _Yeah, I'm __**that **__stubborn – _but seeing the expression in his eyes, I can't help but smile and nod my head while saying, "Yes, James. It is allowed"

The look of ecstasy that takes over his face causes the grin to spread across my features without my knowledge. And before I know it, James hands wrap around my waist and he lifts me off the ground in a bone-crushing hug before spinning me around in circles. I laugh at his childish behavior before he sets me down again and I look into his eyes.

My heart flutters nervously at our close proximity and I once again lose myself in his warm, hazel orbs. As his eyes sparkle with enthusiasm, happiness and something else that I can't quite place, I feel myself get rooted to the spot, unable to tear my own eyes away.

Luckily, James makes the first move and removes his arms from around my waist and takes a few steps back before clearing his throat – _and I swear to Merlin I saw him blush again_. "Told you I was taking it slow on you, didn't I?", he claims smirking, his cool demeanor back in place. Secretly glad that his comment broke the awkwardness of the situation, I snort and say, "What if I told you that _I _was the one taking it slow on _you, _this time?"

"Only one way to prove who's right, then. Isn't it, red?"

"What's with the nicknames, James?", I ask with a raised eyebrow.

"I dunno, really. Sirius, Remus and Peter all have nicknames. So it's only fair that you should have one too"

"I seriously doubt that we have the same sort of friendship that the four of you share", I say, surprising myself with the comment. Even though I never admitted it, I was always envious of the strong bond the four friends shared. Granted I have Mary as my friend, but she's the only close friend I've ever had apart from Severus. But now with him gone, I can't help but feel lonely sometimes. The Marauders on the other hand, are so fiercely loyal to each other that more often times than not, if you found one of them, you found them all.

"Can't say I disagree with you on that. I _never _thought of you as my sibling", James mutters, breaking me out of my reverie. As I raise my eyebrows at his implication, he fumbles and says, "Uh…what I meant was…that, um...uh, that we…"

"Nevermind", I say exasperatedly and chuckle to myself as James quietly sighs with relief. "On a more important note – please don't call me red again. It's worse than sunshine. In fact, don't call me anything other my name"

"Now, let's finish that game, shall we? We're not _meant _to have a ten minute break every time after someone shoots, you know!", I say, picking up the ball again. With a new determination of finishing the game within me, we resume our play…

* * *

After what could have been any time between 2-4 hours, James and I finally decide to finish off the game with a last round as our score stands on a draw. By this time, we are both sweating profusely and breathing rapidly. Trying to avert my eyes from James, who had removed his shirt some time during the game, I concentrate on trying to get the ball from him.

I craftily step forward and block James's path so that he has no other choice but to shoot from that exact position or hand over the ball. _Frankly, I'd prefer the latter of the two._

As James steps back and tries to aim at the basket, I wildly flail my arms in front of him, trying to divert his attention. I hold my breath as he jumps up and shoots the ball. Everything after that seems to be going in slow motion; the ball flies through the air and bounces slightly on the rim before circling the circumference of the basket twice and…

FALLING OUTSIDE!

"Aha! Yes, yes, yes!", I say, jumping up and down with joy at the same time that James swears a few colorful words and groans before saying, "Not fair!"

"Actually, it's absolutely fair", I say before running and grabbing the ball and dribbling it towards the other basket. My breath hitches in my throat as James copies my actions and tries to block my path by standing in front of me where I get a full-access view of his bare chest.

Reluctantly tearing my eyes away from him, I stare at the wall in the corner of the room and shoot the ball into the air, without any idea of where the basket could be. _**That, **__my friends, is called pure talent. And yes, my voice, or my thoughts rather, are dripping with sarcasm._

I almost pass out on the spot in surprise as I see the ball go through the basket and drop to the ground, accompanied by a 'shit!' from James. As I finally look at him after a few moments with a dumb-struck expression, I find James staring at me with confusion in his eyes and a raised eyebrow.

And that's when it hits me – _Of course he thinks I made the basket purposely, not by a fluke!_ _Merlin, Lily! How slow are you?_

"Uh…Yes! I won! Oh my god, I won! Hurray!", I exclaim with as much conviction as I can gather. Even though he still has a doubtful expression on his face, James dejectedly sighs. Seeing this, I can't help but admit something to him –

_No! I am not admitting that I won by a fluke. My ego would be shattered!_

"You know what? For a first timer, you were absolutely fantastic! You almost defeated me and not to sound conceited or anything, but I'm pretty good", I tell him honestly. My stupid heart flutters – _again_ – as James smiles warmly at my comment. "Thanks, Lils. If I'm not mistaken, that's the first compliment you've ever given me"

Doing a quick history search in my mind, I realize that he is right! _Merlin, not a very appreciative person, am I?_

"Well I guess it was a bit difficult to compliment you when you put a permanent sticking charm on my hair or when you burnt my potions essay or when you charmed my slippers to bite my toes off or when you turned me purple for a week or – "

"Alright! Alright! I get it! No need to get so defensive", James says, slinging his arm over my shoulder in a friendly gesture. "Let's go home then, shall we?" _Wait a second…did he just call my house his __**home?**_

"Sure let's go…if you don't have a problem walking out of here without your shirt!", I say before laughing at James's reddening face.

After he puts on his shirt, James and I make our way towards the exit. As the cold night air hits me, I shiver involuntarily and regret not bringing a jacket with me. "Hey, you okay?", James asks me with concern etched across his face.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit co – _Atchoo!_", I sneeze, unable to finish my sentence.

"Merlin, Lily! With all that soap water from yesterday and the cold air now, I won't be surprised if you have a fever soon. Why do you _never _wear a jacket?", James asks exasperatedly, while making to remove his shirt.

"Wait! Don't give me your shirt…you'll freeze to death. And personally, I don't fancy being seen with a half-naked person in my company", I say, trying to make him change his mind.

"Fine. But let's go home soon or the only person freezing to death here will be you"

_Yup. He definitely said 'home' this time! Oh well…James __**is **__my friend, now. So what if he calls it home? No big deal…right?_

"Yeah, let's…oh wait! I forgot Petunia's membership ID in there. Gimme two minutes…I'll be right back", I say before racing back inside and picking up the card from the bleachers in the court. After I return back outside, what I see makes my blood boil…

The one and only Selena bloody Smith is flirting with James!

Admittedly, Selena is far from ugly with her shiny chestnut hair and grey eyes, but under no circumstances is she a pleasant person. In the first few years of my schooling in the Muggle world, Selena was my classmate and she has been my sworn enemy ever since. She had pulled my hair, glued my homework, tied my shoelaces together and made me trip and fall all through my first grade. And ruined my project, ripped my blouse and dumped food on me in the second. _So excuse me while I __**don't **__jump with joy at the sight of her. _

I clench my fists with anger as the floozy runs her fingers over James's chest and giggles in such a manner that makes me want to puke. As I near them, I am glad to see that James doesn't think much of her either, what with his less than comfortable posture and continuous attempts of trying to get rid of her.

"I keep telling you; I have a girlfriend", I hear him say, as his back is turned towards me, his voice full of annoyance. _Poor James…doesn't know that Selena couldn't care less if he has a girlfriend or not._

"Oh you are _so _funny!", she giggles again. I try to hold back my laughter as James pulls his hair in frustration. _That girl has mental issues! I don't blame you, James. Great! Now I'm talking to him in my brain…_

"Listen…uh…what was your name again?"

"Selena", she replies in a horrendously sweet voice.

"Are you by any chance related to Mrs. Smith?", James asks slowly. Then adds after a second, "You know what, nevermind. Maybe you should go now"

"Yes, I _am _related to her. She's my mum. How did you know? You haven't been stalking me have you?", Selena asks in a flirtatious voice – _**completely **__ignoring the last part of his comment - _ before throwing her head back and laughing the most fake-laugh anyone has ever laughed.

I watch as James tries to wrench his arm free of her grip without much success and replies, "No. I haven't. She just came to visit the Evanses and she mentioned you once or twice".

_Shit. He shouldn't have said that._

"The Evanses? You mean, you are Lily Evans' boyfriend? Are you James?" Selena asks with wide eyes.

_Say no. Say no. Please say no._

"Yes. I am" _Bloody hell!_

I watch with apprehension as Selena darts her eyes in all directions without actually turning her head. My heart palpitations increase ten times as her eyes finally rest on me when she glances over James's shoulder. As she surreptitiously smirks evilly in my direction, I feel the dread in my heart growing.

_Okay. That's it. Game's over. _I think before un-rooting myself from the spot and starting towards them.

Halfway through my 8-steps journey, my feet freezes in mid-air and my surrounding starts to spin as Selena clutches the collar of James's shirt and forcefully pulls him down before crashing her lips against his.

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **I know I'm evil. Muahahaha. But don't worry…everything will be fine. Tell me what you think of Selena and what do you think Lily will do? Next chapter's gonna be posted as soon as I finish, like always. Love you guys and waiting for reviews.

Claudia


	17. Atchoo!

**Summer Surprise**

**Atchoo!**

* * *

_Bitch. Bitch. Bitch._

As I stand there watching the most nauseating sight possible in all of history, I cannot believe that Selena I'm-a-complete-bitch Smith would go as far as to kiss my boyfriend _in front of me _just to prove herself.

_Your __**fake**__ boyfriend, you mean._

Yes obviously. But that's beside the point.

_Is it?_

Yeah, of course. Fake boyfriend or not, she has no right. And why am I arguing with the voice inside my head?

_Because you are too dumb to figure out that you're jealous. Ergo you need my help. _

You _are _me. And I am not feeling jealous. Why would I feel jealous?

_Because Selena is kissing James_

So what? He's just my friend. I am not _jealous._

_Then why are you shaking with anger?_

Because Selena's behavior is making me sick. Undoubtedly her character has degraded to an underground level since the last time I saw her. Now shut up and let me go and stop this horrific scene.

…

…

Are you gone?

_Yes._

Good.

After that internal conflict with myself, I manage to finish the rest of my journey and stop beside James and Selena. The only consolation I get from watching the sickening scene is the fact that James seems to be as disgusted with her as I am and is trying to get rid of her, to no avail.

Going red in the face from anger, I am just about to pull them apart when another bloody sneeze makes its appearance. "_Atchoo!"_

After I open my eyes again, _thankfully, _the bitch has disentangled herself from James with an _absolutely _pathetic attempt of shocked expression on her face. "Lily! What are you doing here?", she asks in an exaggerated high voice.

Just as I am about to reply, James beats me to it and shouts, "What the hell did you do that for?" Then without waiting for Selena to answer, he turns towards me and starts a full-speed explanation. "Lily, listen to me. I swear it was not what it looked like. I _told _her to go away and even said that you were my girlfriend. But she didn't listen and then just threw herself at me. I couldn't do anything. I swear to god it was not – "

But I had stopped listening to him halfway through his rambling. Shaking from barely suppressed anger, I walk over to Selena and ask in a dangerously low voice, "Why on _earth _did you do that?"

Of course it was more of a rhetorical question than anything and I knew the answer to that anyway – _because that's what she does. Flirts and steals boyfriends. Even __**fake **__boyfriends. _But seeing her cool demeanor and unfazed attitude makes me want to whip out my wand and hex her black and blue nevertheless.

"Do what, Lily? I can't understand what you're talking about", Selena says with a dreadfully fake curious expression on her face.

"Why did you kiss him?", I whisper through clenched teeth, my eyes flashing dangerously.

My hand involuntarily moves towards my wand which is tucked in the back pocket of my jeans as I catch a glimpse of her smirking face before she quickly sets it back into a fake surprised expression.

"Oh! You know him? How?"

"Hey!", James exclaims, stepping beside me "I _told _you Lily is my girlfriend. In fact, if I remember correctly, you were the one who guessed my name!", he states incredulously.

"Oh well", Ms.I-am-a-bitch-and-I-know-it says in a cool voice, realizing her act was up, "guess it just slipped my mind. And don't pretend you didn't like it. Anyway, I think you should keep a leash on your boyfriend from now on, Lily. He was so _obviously _flirting with me"

Unable to keep my anger in check, my hand reaches my pocket and I am halfway through with pulling my wand when James's warm hand lands on my arm, stopping me from continuing my action.

"Lily! Don't!", he whispers urgently.

Plunging back into my senses, I push the wand back into my pocket and mentally shake myself. _What in the name of Merlin are you doing, Lily? And why the __**hell **__are you so angry?_

As I tear my eyes away from James and look back into Selena's smirking face, the urge to punch her face is overwhelming. Punch her. _Punch her! That's it! I can at least punch her!_

Clenching my fists, I advance towards the brunette in front of me but as I barely raise my hand, _another _freakingsneeze escapes me. Only this time, it's two in a row. "Atchoo! Atchoo!".

All my plans to squash Selena's face to a pulp dissipate as James wraps his arms around my middle and picks me up from the ground _while _I sneeze. _What the heck is he doing?_

Promptly ignoring the fact that I don't mind being manhandled like that – _I swear it's the hormones! Blame them! – _I snap my eyes open to see James carrying me away from a triumphant Selena and scream, "Let me go, James. What are you _doing?_"

"I won't let you get into a catfight! Not when you are so obviously sick. We need to go home", James says with an angry edge to his voice. _Is he angry at me?_

As I open my mouth to retort, he adds in a commanding whisper, "And let me remind you that you were just seconds away from revealing to Selena that you're a witch. Now just do as I say and apparate back home or _I'll_ reveal your secret to Petunia", he finishes while putting me down in a considerably vacant surrounding.

I stare at him with a shocked and – _I admit – _hurt expression. The realization that he is in fact, _blackmailing _me, for some reason or the other, disappoints me more than angers me. Undoubtedly catching my shocked expression, James's face immediately softens and he runs a hand through his hair – _I roll my eyes – _before saying, "Shit, Lily! I'm sorry. I didn't really mean that. It's just I'm so frustrated at what's-her-face. I can't _believe _she did that!"

_Well now I know he wasn't angry at __**me**_

Ignoring the happy feeling at that realization, I reply, "Exactly my point! Why didn't you let me do anything? She might still be there you know – ", I say, starting to go back.

I feel James's warm hand grab my cold arm before he turns me around to face him with curiousness in his eyes. "Firstly, you are _not _going anywhere and _secondly_, why do you care so much? Why are _you _so angry?"

_Darn it! How am I supposed to reply to that question that when I don't know the answer myself? Why __**do **__I care so much? Granted that Selena was being a complete bitch, but she's __**always **__been a bitch. Why did seeing her kissing James made me want to throw her off the face of Earth?_

Realizing that I've been staring blankly at James for the past two minutes, I clear my throat to bring my voice back and mange a stuttering reply. "uh…'cause…Selena's a bitch?", I offer uncertainly. _Smooth, Lily, really smooth._

As I watch a mischievous smirk growing on James's face, my heart starts beating rapidly in apprehension of the comment that is inevitably about to come – '_I think you are jealous, Lily' – _and for once in my lifetime I am grateful when the sneeze makes its appearance. _Again._

"Alright! That's it! We're going home. _Now._", James says before gripping me around the waist and closing his eyes in concentration. Within barely a second, I feel the uncomfortable yet familiar sensation of being squeezed through a tire and we disapparate with a _pop._

* * *

"I _knew _it! I _knew _it! I _knew _it!", James says for the umpteenth time that night. "It's _all _my fault. I should've brought you home earlier"

"Shut up, James", I say exasperatedly. "You're not helping my headache"

"I'm sorry", he quickly mumbles before positioning himself in front of me and fixing me with a glare, "But it's your own fault you know. I had asked you to come home at least ten times before we actually did. So the fever was sort of inevitable, Lils"

Yup, that's right. I have a fever. It started at the dinner table when I was suddenly shivering with cold and sneezing every five minutes. Needless to say, the rest of my dinner had to be discarded. Sadly, a lot of pasta was wasted. On a happier note, Petunia said she couldn't eat in the same table as me in fear of germs attacking her. I thought it was pretty decent of her, on Petunia-standard of course. She is actually trying to not plot my murder for a change. If the old Petunia was around, she would've kicked me out of the house for even coughing a little and then drowned herself in sanitizer.

I groan in response to James's comment and reply with, "Not two seconds ago, you were saying it was _all your fault. _And now suddenly, it's my own fault? Make up your mind"

"Stop trying to change the subject, Lils. You _know _you should've listened to me in the first place"

"Yeah, yeah, okay! You're always right, oh high-and-mighty, James Potter. Are you happy now?", I say to which James chuckles lightly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I would like to get some sleep and stop the hammer pounding in my head"

As I push my legs down from the couch and stand up, my head throbs with such vigor that I have to close my eyes in order to keep myself steady. Blindly groping around for support to keep the room from spinning, I end up clutching James's arm, swaying on the spot.

"Merlin, Lily! You're burning with fever", James says with wide eyes and a worried expression on his face. "You're in no state to walk up to your room. C'mon", he finishes before putting one hand around my waist and the other under my knee and picking me up in bridal style.

As my head is already playing drums and my entire body is hot with fever, it does _not_ help my mental condition when the 'James scent' – _as I've decided to dub it – _makes my mind go fuzzy and force me to think absolutely _inappropriate _thoughts involving a particular dark and messy-haired teenage bloke.

All too soon, we reach my room and James puts me down on the bed before tucking the covers around me. Then, smiling in my direction he says, "Goodnight, Lily" and turns around to leave the room.

Without giving it a second thought, I stretch out my hand and grab James's arm, stopping him from exiting the room. When he turns around and fixes me with a questioning glance, I manage to mumble a 'thank you', too sick and tired to speak loudly.

"Thank you for what?", he asks curiously.

"For bringing me home before I freezed to death, I suppose. And for helping me just now", I reply softly.

James raises his eyebrow and sits down at the foot of my bed before saying, "Never knew you'd be thanking me for such trivial things, lily. That's what _friends _are for, isn't it?". It could've just been my more than a little unstable state of mind, but I feel like James had an edge of bitterness to his voice on the word, 'friends'.

Too worn out to form complete sentences, I mutter, "Mmmhmm", before giving in to my drooping eyelids and closing them. Unfortunately, as it so often happens during fever, despite my closed eyes, I am unable to fall asleep as the incessant banging inside my head refuses to leave.

After a few minutes I feel the bed covers shift, signaling James's departure. Only after I feel someone beside me do I realize that he has not actually left.

"Lily?", James whispers

_I should reply. I'm awake after all. But I'm too tired…_

I hear James sigh softly and the bed covers shift again. Just when I start thinking that this time he has _really _left, I feel a pair of warm lips caress my temple followed by a whisper of "Get well soon, Lils"

As I hear the door shut lightly and feel the lights turn off through my eyelids, my hand involuntarily reaches up to touch the spot where I can still feel James's lips, leaving a tingling sensation.

I sigh and turn on my side, a small smile of content stretched across my face, before finally drifting off to sleep.

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **I know I've kept you guys waiting for quite some time, but I had spirit week in my school and I was on the dance team, so I couldn't find much time to write. Anyway, I also understand that you guys wanted Selena to be thrashed or roasted on a fire or have her arms chopped off and all that good stuff. But try and understand that it was a bit difficult for me to incorporate all that stuff into the story. But never fear, Lily'll get her revenge later on in the story. Can't tell when but she will, I swear. So that's all for now. Next chapter's gonna be up when I finish writing, as usual. Write some reviews guys! Love you…

Claudia


	18. Letters

**Summer Surprise**

**Letters**

* * *

Two and a half weeks.

It has been exactly two and a half weeks since summer started and my life took a turn towards the path of lying and deception. Though, I admit, there was one good thing that came out from this entire affair – I was able to see a side of James Potter that he had never shown me before.

As I lay on my bed with _Pride and Prejudice _in hand, I can't help but drift off to thoughts about a certain tall, dark and messy-haired wizard who is currently living in the room across the hall from mine.

For reasons unbeknownst to myself, a smile appears on my face at the thought of James. In the days that followed the arrival of my fever, James was taking so much care of me that it felt like I was just minutes away from my death. And I admit – _albeit begrudgingly – _it felt good to be pampered like that.

But now that yours truly is all better now, I have decided to announce something that had crossed my mind on the night the fever hit me –

_James Potter is a really amazing guy. _

There. Said it. But you can't just go admitting stuff like that to everyone now, can you? _Especially _not to someone who you had sworn to hate till the end of your life. So there.

I sigh and force my mind to go back to the life of Elizabeth Bennet. Realizing that I am actually having to _force _myself to read the book that I read about 10 times a year _just _because I like to, I seriously start considering making an appointment with a psychiatrist when I hear a soft tapping on my window.

Muffin.

Making my way across the room, I open the window and let the little bird in. After offering some owl treats to him, I untie the letter from my best friend's owl's leg.

_Dear Lily,_

_Firstly, I am sorry for replying so late. But I hope you didn't expect me to choose you over the hot guys here, right? Because if you did, you're delusional, my friend. _

_Just kidding! Geez, I can already feel your glare while I'm inking this on the parchment. I couldn't reply because Muffin was away delivering letters for my mum. Honestly, people in my family need to learn how to use their __**own **__things._

_Anyway, enough about me. What's all this hocus-pocus about James Potter in your house? You better tell me everything in detail girl, or you're dead when I see you at the station. And I'm serious!_

_You don't believe me, do you?_

_Fine. You're right. I'm too nice a person to murder someone. And the fact that I'd have to go to Azkaban after killing you isn't helping either. But Lily, pleeeaaasssee tell me __**something. **__You __**know **__how long I've waited for you to finally come to your senses and give the poor bloke a chance. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that I've been after you for as long as he has._

_Now, I am dying for juicy gossip here so you better reply fast._

_Love,_

_Your gorgeous and talented bf, _

_Mary._

_PS – You would not by chance have managed to see James shirtless, have you? If no, you just have a sad life, honey. If yes, are the rumors true? I NEED DETAILS!_

I put down the letter on my table and walk over to grab a piece of parchment to reply, smiling as I do so, when mum's voice reaches my ears. "Lily! You've got a letter from school. James, honey, you've got one too"

"Coming Mum", I bellow in reply.

"I'll be right back, Muffin", I say over my shoulder while walking over to the door and opening it before stepping out into the hall.

I chuckle and roll my eyes as James leaves his room the same time as me and throws an overdramatic flying kiss in my direction. Smiling, I walk over to him as he pauses in front of the stairs, waiting for me to join him before we make our way downstairs.

"So I guess Dumbledore knows I'm here, hmm?", he asks once we start descending the staircase.

"Of course", I reply "Dumbledore knows everything. I've often wondered how he does it – keeping track of every single thing, that is. Then again, that man never ceases to surprise me"

"Truer words were never spoken. He's completely bonkers though", James says with fondness in his eyes that makes me smile again.

"Bonkers but _brilliant_", the both of us finish at the same time before chuckling lightly.

* * *

"Hey mum", I say, once we reach the kitchen "Where are the letters?"

"Uh…they are on the counter", mum replies distractedly, taking something out from the oven; roasted beef, I think, from the smell.

I walk over to the counter and pick up two letters and hand the one with _James Potter _written on it while muttering, "That's yours" and take the one with _Lily Evans _on it before going to the living room and sitting on the couch.

As I carefully tear open the seal with the Hogwarts emblem on it, making sure I don't tear the letter itself, I feel the couch sink a little and watch James plop down beside me from the corner of my eye. After pulling out the note inside the envelope, my eyes scan over the message –

_Dear Miss Evans,_

_It is my pleasure to inform you that you have been appointed as the Head Girl of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for your final year. This is a decision that has been approved by me and all the heads of houses and we feel that you truly deserve this position. We hope that you will set a role model for other students to follow and you will carry through with your responsibilities with a positive attitude. I would also like to inform you that you will be working alongside James Potter, who has been appointed as head boy for the coming year. You will find your head girl badge along with your usual school supplies list inside the envelope. Enjoy the rest of you summer._

_Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore_

_Grand Sorceror_

_Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

_Order of Merlin First Class_

I sit on the couch, gaping like a fish out of water for a few moments before reading the letter again; once, twice, thrice. My hands fumble with excitement as I grab the envelope and promptly turn it upside-down, emptying it of its contents. My eyes widen and my heart starts thumping rapidly as I observe the shiny metal on my palm with the words 'Head Girl' carved into it. _Head girl…me…me?...head girl…__**Head **__girl?_

"EEEEEEPP!", I scream, jumping up from the couch and doing a retarded happy dance for a good few minutes. Turning around, I grab James's hand and pull him up from the couch too, ignoring his 'Are-you-mentally-instable?' expression.

_As you can guess, I was hoping I'd get the position ever since I was made a prefect. But that doesn't make it any less exciting!_

I suddenly feel an overwhelming urge to hug James and give in to it - _Big deal! Friends hug all the time. _As I feel his arms wrap around me in response, I say, "I am head girl, James! I am _so _happy!"

I pull away from him to gauge his expression and seeing his beaming face only makes my smile grow wider – _if that's even possible. _"I know, Lils. It's in my letter. I'm head boy remember?"

"Oh, right. It sort of escaped my mind in all the excitement", I reply sheepishly but then give him a quick hug again and say, "Congrats. I'm happy for you"

"Wait a second…aren't you mad at me? Even a little bit? I can't tell you how shocked _I _am. Dumbledore seems to be off his rocker…uh…more than usual, I mean. I thought you'd be shocked too", James says pulling back from me.

Honestly, the reason I am shocked is that I'm not that shocked with his appointment. If truth be told, I would have been furious if this had happened any time before summer started. But then again, a _lot _of things were different before this summer.

I sigh a little and then reply, "Firstly, I wouldn't be mad at you 'cause you can't help it if Dumbledore appointed you. Secondly, yes, I am a little shocked but not much. Don't ask me, I dunno why. And thirdly, aren't you happy?", I finish with a curious expression when I notice that James didn't seem too ecstatic about being head boy.

"I guess…", he says, frowning a little. "Yeah, I _am _happy. I get to work with you too", he amends, suddenly grinning widely. I roll my eyes at his behavior but smile nonetheless. After a second, James groans and runs a frustrated hand through his hair – _he __**needs **__to stop doing that – _before sighing heavily. I fix him with a completely baffled and confused expression. _Honestly, his expression changes every five seconds._

"Sirius", he says, frowning and folding his arms across his chest.

"Okay! Now you're totally confusing me. How does Black have anything to do with this?"

"Ha! Padfoot has everything to do with this. He's gonna make sure I never live this down", James grumbles in response.

"Wha – ", I start before James answers my question anyway.

"He's going to take the mickey out of me. I can see it all happening very clearly", James says, his eyes taking a faraway look in them. I chuckle to myself, wondering whether he _actually is _'seeing it all happening very clearly' or not. "I bet you ten galleons he's gonna say that I have become a goody-two shoes as soon as I tell him about this"

"I'd have to be crazy to take that bet", I say to James. That is _exactly_ the type of comment Sirius Black is likely to make when he finds out about one of the Marauders being appointed as a head boy. I remember Remus telling me how much the other boys teased him when he was made a prefect in fifth year. _Hmm…I wonder why Remus wasn't made Head Boy…_

"Why isn't _Moony_ head boy? He's the one who's supposed to be getting this position", James's voice breaks me from my reverie.

_What the…how? _"James", I start slowly "Can you read minds? Are you good at Legilimency or something?"

"Huh? What are you on about?"

"Nevermind", I say, shaking my head. _What is wrong with you, Lily Marie Evans? I really need to get a control of my mouth._

"Okaayy", James says, looking at me uncertainly. "Anyway, as I was saying…why do you think Dumbledore appointed me, Lily?"

"I can't be sure but I can guess. He probably wants to give you a chance to prove yourself. And I don't want to feed your already overlarge ego, but you've got pretty good leadership qualities and you're talented. So he probably thinks you'd do a good job", I reply, trying to appear nonchalant which fails horribly when I notice the way James stares at me with such intensity in his eyes that makes my stomach flip-flop incessantly.

I clear my throat loudly which effectively snaps him out of his trance. "Um…wow! Thanks, Lily", James says softly and I trace a hint of blush in his cheeks when he looks down at the floor. _Bleeding hell! Surely the world's coming to an end?_

"Anytime", I reply with a smile.

"Lily!", mum's voice calls out, "come and help me set up the table for lunch, please"

* * *

As I return to my room after having lunch – _In case you're wondering, it __**was **__roasted beef – _I find muffin hooting impatiently, perched on top of the window-sill. "Oops! Sorry, Muffin. I forgot that you were here", I say walking over and offering him some more owl treats.

Deciding that it would be cruel to make him wait longer, I sit down and start replying to Mary's letter –

_Dear Mary,_

_You're lucky I love you so much that I am not going to hex you for suggesting that hot blokes come before me in your life. For your offense, I am not going to provide you with information about James Potter._

_No, seriously though, it's really complicated and I just don't fancy talking about all that sort of stuff in a letter. I need to see your oh-so-gorgeous face while I give you the details. You know that right? Anyway, what I __**can**__ tell you is that your best friend for life has been appointed as Head girl. _

_Yep. You read that right. I, Lily Marie Evans, am head girl. And guess who's head boy? Nah…you'll never be able to. So I'll save you the trouble -_

_It is James Potter._

_If you managed to survive and your eyes didn't completely pop out of their sockets and fall into your hands – I __**know **__I'm good with imagery – I would like to tell you that James and I are friends now…Dead yet? _

_In the __**very **__unlikely event that you are conscious enough to reply to this letter, pleeeaasse don't ask me to give you more information on what or how or when everything happened. I swear I'll tell you everything – every single, minute detail – you need to know when I see you on September first._

_Love,_

_Lily_

_xoxoxo_

At this point, I bite my lip, wondering what I should answer to her PS. Realizing that it is after all, Mary, my crazy best friend, I decide to go with the truth.

_PS – Yes, Mary…I've seen him shirtless. ALRIGHT! I admit it. The rumors are true. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that it's better than the rumors. Merlin, I was almost drooling. Me! __**I **__was drooling, Mary! He's so hot…it's pathetic! There. Said it. I can't tell you what a relief it is to have been able to get it all out. Now…if you dare tease me __**even a little, **__I swear to god it will be the last thing you do, Mary McDonald. I mean it._

As I tie the letter to Muffin's leg and watch him fly out the window and disappear from view, I realize for the first time in my life, how important it is to have a best friend who you can share your hormonal thoughts with among other things, without having to worry about how retarded you sound.

With that happy thought in mind, I crawl under the covers of my lovely, comfortable bed and try to go back into _Pride and Prejudice _without having my thoughts being corrupted by a certain someone with the initials JP.

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **So another chapter done. I know I took quite some time to update but I was really confused as to what way I should take the story 'cause I didn't feel like going exactly with my previous plot. But don't worry…I've got it figured out now. Anyway, keep the reviews coming guys. I really appreciate the feedback.

Claudia


	19. Deal and Dating

**Summer Surprise**

**Deal and Dating**

* * *

"Hey, Lils", Dad greets me as I walk into the living room.

"'Morning, Dad", I reply, settling myself on the couch next to him and casually throwing my hair into a messy bun. I softly huff in annoyance as some strands of hair immediately tumble out of the bun and fall back on my face.

"So, Lily", Dad continues, turning around to face me. Sensing it as a serious discussion, I turn a little as well to show him that he has my attention. "I want to talk to you about James. God knows I have been extremely busy with work for the past two weeks to even breathe"

I bite my lip in apprehension of where this conversation was going. _I have a really strong feeling that I'm not going to like this._

"What about James?", I ask softly

Sensing my uneasiness, Dad chuckles lightly before saying, "Relax, Lils. You have nothing to worry about. I approved Vernon for Petunia, didn't I?"

I can't help but laugh at that comment and finally ask the question that had been bugging me ever since the Walrus started dating Petunia. "Why _did _you approve of him, Dad? He's so full of himself".

Dad sighs audibly and replies, "I can't deny the fact that I am not really fond of him. He _is _quite boring". I can't help the snort that escapes me and I mutter 'understatement' before allowing Dad to continue. He smiles and says, "Yes, you're right. He is dreadfully boring. And horribly rude to you too".

I reassuringly pat Dad's arm as he suddenly frowns. _Probably remembering that awful dinner get-together. _

"Anyway, as I was saying – I don't like him as a person, Lils. But he makes Petunia happy".

"But does that really account for everything? I mean, does it matter how much he makes Tuney happy? How does that make a difference if he's not a pleasant person?", I ask, not convinced by his answer.

"Vernon may not be a pleasant person, but he loves your sister. And I know that she loves him too. It _is _pretty depressing that Petunia would fall in love with someone like Vernon Dursley and add stress on my old nerves. But you know what, Lils? I know that he's going to keep her happy. He genuinely likes her. Maybe she's the only person he gets along with, but I know that he won't hurt her", Dad explains.

I nod slowly, trying to understand the situation. Desperate to get rid of the serious atmosphere, I wrinkle my nose mockingly and say, "They make a really awkward couple, don't they?"

Dad laughs heartily and I smile, pleased with myself. "I couldn't agree more with you, Lils. They do indeed look weird together. But please don't tell your mother I said that, will you?", he asks with a frantic look towards the living room entrance.

I put on a straight face, trying to suppress my chuckle and offer him my hand to shake while saying, "And you won't tell her I said that either. We carry this secret to our graves. Deal?"

"Deal", Dad says, putting on a serious face as well and shaking my hand. After a few more moments, the two of us burst out laughing and I wipe my eyes to get rid of the tears forming in them.

"Ahh, But despite all your teasing, Lils, I know you really love your sister", Dad tells me, patting my shoulder. I smile to him in response, not being able to lie by contradicting him.

"Now", he continues, "We got side-tracked. I wanted to talk about you and James"

_Oh right! Let's get back to the matter at hand – discussing my relationship with the boy who I despised for six years of my life and then made him my fake boyfriend this summer and then decided he wasn't so bad and then became friends with him. Oh and he smells heavenly. This should be interesting to talk about._

"Yeah, Dad?"

"I like him, Lils. The boy's good for you. I just wanted you to know that. There are not many blokes I would approve for you. You're special and different than Petunia is. Petunia had always hated it when she didn't get what she wanted and when she found something, she wouldn't budge until she got it. You, on the other hand, always asked for approval and gave away things for your sister's happiness", he pauses and sighs before continuing, "The point is, I would only approve of someone who valued you for who you really are, Lils. You deserve the best. And James loves you a lot. I've seen it in his eyes. He'll keep you happy, sweetheart".

Overcome with emotion, I wrap my arms around his neck and hug him. "Thank You, Daddy. It means a lot to me". I clear my throat to get rid of my chocked voice filled with tears. _No. I won't cry. Lily Evans never cries. Get a hold of yourself, girl._

"It's okay Lils", Dad says, pulling back from the hug and tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "But it doesn't mean I'll not break his bones if he hurts you even a little. Promise me you'll tell me if he deserves a good punch", he says jokingly.

I chuckle softly at his attempt to make me smile and say, "Don't worry daddy. I'll make sure I give him a black-eye first".

Dad laughs jovially and says, "That's my girl. Now go annoy your sister. I want new material to joke about. I and your mum love making fun of you girls"

"Dad!", I screech, laughing nonetheless.

* * *

I remove my flip-flops and feel the cool grass between my toes before sitting down on the lawn in the backyard. Pulling my knees to my chest, I wrap my arms around my legs before resting my forehead on my knees and sighing heavily. A thousand thoughts run through my mind as I try to process everything that just happened.

"Ugh!', I exclaim in frustration as guilt flows through my veins.

"Someone's in a glorious mood", a teasing voice says, making me jump a foot in the air.

I look up to see James smirking down at me with his arms crossed across his chest. But the smirk immediately wipes off from his face as he notices my dejected expression. I sigh once more before resting my head on my legs again and closing my eyes.

"You scared me", I say, my voice muffled.

I hear a mumble of 'sorry' before I feel – _okay, I'm pathetic; I __**smell**_ – James settle himself on the grass next to me. "Hey, what's wrong?", he asks in a soft voice.

I bite my lip, the urge to cry getting stronger by the second. Digging my nails into my palms, I try to get control of my emotions before looking up once more at James and replying, "Everything. Everything is horribly and disgustingly wrong!"

"You know you're being _really _vague, don't you?", he asks with amusement.

I frown at him before stuffing my face into my knees again and tersely replying, "I'm feeling horrible enough as it is, without you teasing me. So if that's what you're planning on doing, you can leave me alone"

I don't need to look up to see the guilty expression on his face as he says, "You're right. I'm being a prick. Sorry. Seriously, tell me what's wrong"

"My Dad really likes you", I complain, not caring that I am being completely indecipherable in my explanation.

"Will you blame me if I tell you that I can't understand what the problem with that is? I would've thought it was a good thing when someone likes me", James replies cheekily.

I roll my eyes at him, even though I doubt that he can see them, due to my position. Deciding that I would have to give him a proper response, I rotate to face James and change my position so that my legs are crossed and my face is visible to him as I prepare myself to explain the seriousness of the matter.

"Don't you understand, James", I start, staring into his hazel orbs that almost look caramel in the sunlight, "It's my Dad. Not Petunia. This is getting serious. He trusts me _and _you. My dad is extremely over-protective of me, if I do say so myself. And now that he is finally letting it go a little, for me, it's all just a huge, dirty lie. I'm breaking his trust. He just said all these things to me, James; I can't even tell you how guilty I feel right now. I don't know what to do!"

I put my face into my hands and try to control my erratic heart beat while inhaling and exhaling softly to prevent the tears from spilling down my cheeks.

I feel James's warm hands on my own as he pulls them away from my face and then tilts up my chin so that I am forced to look into his eyes. I swallow as he places one hand on my cheek and uses the other to tuck the rest of the loose strands of hair behind my ears before placing that one on my other cheek as well, cupping my face.

"Truthfully, Lily, I don't know what you could do to solve this problem other than telling everyone the truth or…", he trails off, looking uncomfortable.

"Or?", I prod him to continue with a curious expression.

He sighs and removes his hands from my face - _I can't help but feel disappointed at the loss – _before grasping my hands in his own again and replying, "Think. You're smart. You'll understand what I mean"

Annoyed at his indirect response, I force myself to think about what he could've wanted to say. My eyes widen as realization dawns upon me. _Oh Merlin. He wants me to be his girlfriend. For __**real**__!_

"Oi", James says, squeezing my hand, "Don't stress about it. Its fine if you don't want to. It was just a suggestion". I close my mouth which had dropped open during the realization and look into James's eyes. Despite his smile and attempt to maintain a nonchalant attitude, it becomes difficult for me to ignore the obvious hopefulness in them.

My brain runs a thousand miles a second as I try to formulate a response. On one hand, agreeing to gout with him would rid me of some of the guilt that has settled over me. _And merlin knows I need that! _

On the other hand, agreeing to be _James Potter's _girlfriend! It would ruin everything, wouldn't it? We only just became friends. It would be taking things too far. And I don't want to lead James on. Lord knows how long we'll be dating. We probably wouldn't even survive a month. _And I have a __**really **__strong feeling that if we break up, the friendship wouldn't last either. _

"James can I ask you something?", I finally speak up, simultaneously trying to make up my mind.

"Sure", he says with a curious expression.

"Why did you come to my house that day?", I ask. "And please tell me the truth"

He runs his hand through his hair, reminding me that his other hand was still holding mine. I roll my eyes and grab his arm to stop the action. "It still annoys me", I tell him, albeit the smile on my face is growing.

James grins sheepishly at me and says, "I…uh…I wasn't lying when I said that I was missing you. I really did come to just see you"

I raise my eyebrows at him before fixing him with an incredulous look. "You mean to say that you were missing me so much in just two bloody days that you decided to pop up in my house?"

"Yes. _And _it may or may not have something to do with me feeling guilty about our last encounter at school. And I may or may not have come to apologize to you and lost my resolve at the last minute", he confesses looking at anywhere but me.

I bite my lip from the effort it takes to not burst out laughing at his suddenly fidgety attitude. On the last day of school when we were in the great hall, James somehow managed to pour pumpkin juice down my head when he was trying to aim it at Sirius Black. It was when his prat of a best friend ducked and it hit me instead that he started bloody laughing at me! Needless to say, I gave him a good kick in the shin and stormed out from there - _but not before he asked me out __**again**__, of course. _I refused to even look at him for the rest of the day and by the time I reached home and Petunia had called me a freak at least fifty times, I had forgotten all about it.

But it seems like he hasn't. I can't help but find it sweet that he actually bothered to come all the way to just apologize to me, even if he _did _lose his resolve at the last moment.

"You can always apologize now, you know", I say smirking as his head snaps back to my direction so fast that he probably got a whiplash.

"Wha…", he breathes, unable to believe my reaction to his confession. As I raise an eyebrow at him in amusement, he clears his throat and says, "Right. Um…I'm sorry, Lily. I shouldn't have poured pumpkin juice on you"

"No, you shouldn't have. But do you realize that I wasn't mad at you because of that, right? I was mad at you because you were freaking laughing at me James!", I exclaim, shoving his shoulder playfully.

"Yeah. Remus told me as much", he grumbles in response

I chortle at his lack of common sense and bump him in the head with my fist gently before saying "is it empty in there? You're such a dork". I roll my eyes at his anxious expression and say, "Yes, James. I forgive you"

I watch James's beaming face at my response for a few moments before turning away from him and determinedly staring ahead so that I can concentrate on what I have to say.

"James", I pause, making sure I have his attention from the corner of my eye. Once satisfied, I continue, "I can't believe I'm going to tell you this…but I don't want to lead you on. I don't want you to think there is something more than friendship between us at this point when I tell you that…", I trail off, trying to control my breathing and hammering heart, to no avail. My stomach squirms and I swallow audibly before saying, "When I tell you that I am ready to go out with you"

"As your girlfriend. For real", I add for good measure before taking a deep breath and turning to face James.

I can swear I saw him pinch himself on the arm when I glanced at him before he muttered something that sounded horribly like 'not a dream'.

Trying my best to not laugh at his ridiculous reaction, I ask him in a cautious voice, "So…is it okay with you? I mean you really don't have to do this. Hell, I _know _I'm being selfish. But I really don't want to give you any wrong ideas"

James keeps staring at me for so long that I start feeling extremely uncomfortable from his gaze. "Uh…James? I asked if it was okay with you", I repeat again.

"JAMES!", I shout, snapping my fingers in front of his eyes in order to get his attention. As he jerks back and blinks at me before asking me, "What?", in a dazed voice, I roll my eyes and repeat myself slowly, in an exasperated voice, "For the hundredth time;Is it okay with you?"

"Merlin, Lily!", he says before suddenly wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me in a hug. After getting over my initial surprise at being hugged so tightly, I breathe in James's scent and release a soft sigh in contentment. As I bury my face in his chest and try my best to not lose my wits from his addicting smell, I hear him say, "Okay? Okay? Seriously? It's more than I can ask for. Of course I'm okay with it"

I pull back from James – _partly to look at him and partly to put my hormones at ease – _and grin at him which he returns with one of his own. "Thank You", I whisper to him gratefully.

He just shrugs casually and gets up from the grass before pulling me to my feet too. "Oi!', I reprimand him mockingly as he tries to wrap his arm around my waist playfully.

As I shove him away with my elbow, the git laughs and drapes his arm around my shoulder in a friendly manner which causes me to chortle involuntarily. "So what now?", I ask.

"Now…", James pretends to think while stroking his imaginary 'beard', before turning to me with a mischievous look in his eyes which I do not like at _all _. "Now since you're my girlfriend and I'm your boyfriend, we can snog all we want", he replies jokingly with his smirk back in place.

"Not even in your dreams, Potter!", I respond, crossing my arms across my chest and rolling my eyes while promptly ignoring my stupid heart which flutters wildly at his response. _Honestly! These hormones! Merlin knows I need anti-wild teenage hormones pills urgently!_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **I'm pretty happy with this chapter. So they're finally dating. For real. Even though Lily thinks they are 'just friends'. Psh…as if! Anyway, tell me what you guys think about it, okay? I'll be happy to get all the feedback I can. Love you guys.

Claudia


	20. Pure Chocolate Goodness

**Summer Surprise**

**Pure Chocolate Goodness**

* * *

I am dating James Potter.

James Potter is my boyfriend.

We're dating…

But as friends.

_Merlin, that has got to be the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!_

I lay awake in my bed at god-knows-what-time-of-the-night and stare at the dark room with wide, awake eyes. I finally groan in frustration and sit up straight, giving up sleep for the time being. Sighing, I put my head in my hands and ponder over what a mess my life has become.

Ever since we decided to date a few days back, James and I have been in a weird relationship where neither of us can figure out how to behave around each other. Despite our agreement to not cross the friendship line, the fact that we're actually dating keeps popping up into my – _and most likely James'_ – mind. I could've never imagined that things could ever get _awkward _between me and James Potter. Frightening, frustrating, friendly, _sure. _But never _awkward. _

_Grrrrr_

I stare, open-mouthed, at the culprit – my stomach. The way in which it grumbled, I would be surprised if the entire street has not heard it yet.

Alright! I admit…I lied during dinner tonight and said that I wasn't hungry. But in my defense, it was not without good reason – _we had broccoli_. I think that explains everything. Honestly! Who even thought of growing that hideous vegetable? People should have grown more crops such as cocoa beans…

_Grrrr_

"Ugh! Shut-up, you!" I reprimand my stomach, feeling infuriated that it would complain at the mere thought of chocolate.

_Chocolate! That's it!_

Remembering the box of chocolate fudge ice-cream sitting in the freezer downstairs, I quickly throw off my covers and jump out of bed. After checking the time – 1:00 a.m – and making sure that it is late enough for everyone to be soundly asleep, I slowly turn the door knob and step out into the dark hallway.

Tiptoeing my way across that hall, I reach the staircase and blindly grope the banister in the darkness before making my way downstairs. As I take step after step carefully, I start wondering how I had even managed to run outside that night - when I saw the stag - without breaking my skull in the process.

Finally reaching downstairs, I start walking into the kitchen, but not before almost dropping the china vase kept on the table on my way. _Merlin, I'm such a klutz_. After making sure that mum's _precious _vase is firmly glued on the table, I enter the kitchen.

_Grrrr_

"Alright! Alright! I'm almost there." I whisper furiously to my ill-mannered stomach before walking over to the refrigerator and opening the freezer, letting the sudden cold air make me shiver for a second.

As soon as my eyes fall on the box of pure chocolate goodness kept in one corner of the freezer, my heart skips a beat in anticipation and my stomach agrees wholeheartedly. Grinning like a maniac, I stretch my hand to pull out the ice-cream…

"Stealing in your own house, Miss Evans? Where are your manners?"

My eyes pop out of my socket in surprise, my hand retracts itself in shock, my heart starts hammering painfully in terror and the inevitable scream of fright that tears from my lips gets silenced by a hand closed tightly around my mouth, making it sound muffled and almost inaudible.

"Shh…It's me," _he _whispers, his lips slightly brushing my ear and sending shivers down my spine.

I sigh very heavily in relief and take a few seconds to allow my shocked heart to slow down. I nod my head as a signal for James to drop his hand from my mouth before turning around and facing him.

_I shouldn't have done that._

My recently recovered heart starts thumping against my rib cage again, but for _completely _different reasons. Thanks to the light coming from the freezer, I find James's face mere inches away from my own. Unknowingly, my eyes start trailing all over his features – sparkling hazel eyes, sharp nose, soft lips…

_No, No, No! Avert eyes, Avert eyes!_

As I force my eyes to tear away from his lips and concentrate on his face, I find him looking back at me with a very smug expression. Blushing profusely and not trusting my hormones, I step away from James and determinedly stare at the floor.

"So…what were you stealing?" James teases.

I frown and look up at him, annoyed that he is delaying my late night ice-cream meal. "I was _not _stealing". James raises his eyebrows at me, to which I reply by crossing my arms across my chest and saying, "I was merely taking a nighttime stroll."

As the words leave my mouth, I mentally kick myself. _Honestly_,_ Lily? How thick are you?_

James snorts and rolls his eyes – _obviously thinking along the same lines as me _- before replying, "Yeah, right. If I remember clearly, that is the exact excuse _I_ used last time and _you _said something along the lines of 'your excuse is absolutely pathetic'. So do you want me to repeat it or are you going to tell me the truth before that?"

I huff in annoyance and place my hands on my hips before whispering, "Fine. I actually just wanted to have some ice-cream."

"Aha!" James exclaims triumphantly "I knew you were only lying when you said you weren't hungry. Like I told you before, your eyes and habit of biting your lip gives you away, Lils"

"Yeah yeah, you're an amazing lie-detector machine. Happy now?"

"What in Merlin's name is a lie-detector machine?" James asks with a - _disturbingly adorable - _confused expression on his face.

I can't help the small bout of chuckle that escapes my lips at his question. Shaking my head at James, I reply, "Never mind. It's a muggle thing. Now, _if _you don't mind, I would like some pure chocolate goodness."

James stuffs his fist in his mouth to keep himself from laughing. I can't help but grin a little too when he manages to say, "Pure chocolate goodness? Seriously Lily?" I simply shrug in response and turn back to the freezer before _finally _pulling out the box of chocolate fudge ice-cream. _About time too!_

As I try grabbing a spoon from the kitchen counter in the semi-darkness, I ask, "So…what exactly are _you _doing, up at this hour of the night? Or should I say morning? Gah! Whatever!"

"I was just thinking about…um…stuff," he replies lamely. "And then I heard your bedroom's door opening and I followed you all the way here. I would like to mention that you made a very nice catch with the vase back there, by the way."

"Thanks," I mumble, my hand finally finding the spoon. As soon as I am about to question James what he was thinking about, he eyes the spoon in my hand and says, "Can you get one for me as well, please?"

"What makes you think I'm sharing this?" I ask nodding my head towards the box in my hand. _Under no circumstances am I giving up on any of this goody._

"Only the fact that I may rat you out to your mother tomorrow morning if you don't." James replies, grinning evilly.

"You wouldn't," I warn him, narrowing my eyes into slits.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Lils. But, you don't really look very intimidating in your pajamas with an ice-cream box and spoon in your hand." he says, ruffling my hair a bit.

I swat his arm away playfully before reaching out and grabbing another spoon from the counter – _much faster now that I know where it was. _Thrusting the spoon in his hand, I push past him while muttering, "Always knew he was a blackmailer."

"Oi! I heard that," he complains, catching up with me.

"You were meant to." I reply cheekily, grinning at him.

As we leave the kitchen to go to the dining table, I make sure to turn on those lights which wouldn't be even slightly visible from Petunia's or Mum and Dad's room. Then I cast a _Muffliato _charm around the room for good measure as well. At James' questioning glance, I reply, "I can't have them hearing noises and coming down to see me eating ice-cream now, can I?"

As soon we settle ourselves around the dining table, James on my right side, I promptly scoop up a spoon full of ice-cream and stuff it in my mouth. "Mmmm," I moan, as the cold chocolate slides down my throat. "Thish ish goof." I say, looking at James.

"Wow! You really _are _hungry." he says, raising his eyebrows. As I nod my head in agreement, he smiles and puts down his spoon on the table before saying, "Go ahead. I don't want it."

My heart almost melts when he says that. That was probably the sweetest thing he ever did. _What? I think it's a huge deal if someone gives up food for me. _

I sigh and shake my head before sliding the box towards James and saying, "No. Please take some. I don't think I'll be able to have all of this by myself." I bite my lip and shift uncomfortably as I watch him study my face.

"Don't lie. You just bit your lip again. And_ even _if you hadn't, we both know that you are more than capable of eating this _and_ three more boxes of ice-cream by yourself," James says, his eyes sparkling with amusement. _Damn him and his witty remarks. Wait! Did he just…?_

"Did you just imply that I am fat or something?" I ask in a furious whisper, fixing James with the glare of death.

He immediately pales and shakes his head so rapidly that I start fearing that it will fall off. "N-no…never! I swear to god you're not fat. It's just that…uh…you like to eat a bit". As I open my mouth to question him further, James gulps and hastily adds, "But that's totally normal. It's quite endearing actually. Sirius likes to eat too."

"You know…you should've left out that Sirius part. That's more offending than telling me I'm fat. And you better admit that I don't have as disgusting table manners as him if you value your life," I threaten James, pointing the spoon at him.

"Trust me when I say that you are in no way disgusting." James whispers before wrapping one hand around my wrist to push the threatening spoon down. Then he runs his other hand's thumb across my cheek, too close to the corner of my mouth. I stare into his hazel eyes as he retracts his hand slowly from my face and says, "ice-cream."

I barely manage to nod my head in response due to the fact that my breath hitches in my throat when James licks off the chocolate from his thumb. I quickly avert my eyes from him and concentrate of stuffing my face again. After a few moments, I suddenly remember that I have to convince James to eat the ice-cream. _Not to mention it would help me break this awkward silence._

"James Potter. Eat. This. Now!" I order him, pushing the box his way. I decide to glare at him until he does as I ask him to. Sighing in a defeated manner, James shakes his head at me before saying, "You are one incontrovertible girl, Lily Evans." I smile as he takes the ice-cream from me anyway.

A few moments of silence pass during which I start thinking about my relationship with the boy next to me again before James breaks it and says, "I like this."

I turn to look at him and raise an eyebrow in amusement. "Well _obviously. _It _is _pure chocolate goodness after all."

James rolls his eyes and chortles lightly before putting the spoon back into the now empty box – _Damn – _and saying, "That's not what I was talking about. Though, yes, I have to agree with you on that wholeheartedly too. But what I actually meant was that I like it the way we are now," James explains. "Not the way we have been for the past few days."

I shift uncomfortably in my seat and start fidgeting with my hands, seeing which James places his own hands on top of mine and continues, "I'm not saying it's your fault Lils. Just relax." Then he takes a deep breath and runs a hand through his hair – _which has dauntingly stopped annoying me now. I think I'm going crazy – _before pointing out, "It's just things are getting a bit awkward, you know."

"You're telling me," I mutter, before I can help myself.

"Good. So I'm not the only one who thinks so," James visibly relaxes as he says this. "Anyway, as I was saying, things are getting awkward and honestly, it's worse than you being annoyed. At least then I knew what to expect or how to handle it. But this is just downright weird. In fact, I was up so late thinking about this exact problem. So…I suggest we find a solution for this. Do you have anything in mind?"

_God it's unnerving how similarly we think, sometimes. I think I'm spending too much time with him…James Potter is rubbing off on me. Scary thought!_

"Will you believe me if I tell you that apart from starving to death, everything you mentioned was the other half of the reason that I couldn't sleep?" I say, resting my head on my propped up palm.

"I've been wondering for quite some time and I think that it's for the best if we just behaved like friends. I know it's a bit difficult, what with all this dating craziness in between, but I guess if we just stayed friends when my family is not watching over us like a hawk, it wouldn't be so awkward anymore," I suggest casually.

"Yeah. That's a brilliant idea. Makes things much less complicated. And Merlin knows we need that right now." James says, to which I nod my head vigorously in agreement.

"Okay! So now that we're clear on that, I want to ask you something I've been dying to ask since…since like forever." James suddenly says, crossing his arms across his chest and leaning back in his chair, making it stand on its hind legs.

"Shoot." I reply.

"Why is it that you liked Remus for all these years and…you know…neverlikedme?" he asks, mumbling the last part so fast that it actually takes me a few seconds to understand what he said. "Or even Sirius or Peter for that matter." he hastily adds at my scrutinizing expression.

_Is he serious?_

"Are you _actually _expecting me to answer that question?" I ask James, leaning my elbows against the table. He simply nods in response.

I sigh and rub my eyes, finally feeling a bit sleepy,before replying, "Alright. Let's go through this in a list shall we?" At James' confused, I roll my eyes and say, "I'm too lazy to explain…just listen." James snorts at my comment and I manage a small smile too.

"I always thought Remus was very polite to everyone. Even in first year, when you guys behaved like hooligans and pranked day and night, he somehow managed to take part in it and still not seem arrogant about it. I don't think I need to tell you that I appreciate it when people are _not _arrogant. And – " I chance a glance at James, not sure if I should continue. "And he trusted me enough to tell me about his secret. I know it must've been really difficult for him to open up to someone like that. But it really meant a lot to me, James, even though I had figured it out a long time before he told me. So, yeah, I guess Remus is like a brother I never had."

"A brother? So you never…?" James trails off with a hopeful look in his eyes.

I can't help the laughter that escapes me before I shake my head and say, "No. Of course not. I never liked him like _that_, James." I look up to see the messy haired boy grinning sheepishly at me while rubbing the back of his neck. I roll my eyes at him, smiling nonetheless, before reaching out and ruffling his hair.

"Okay…now for Peter Pettigrew. Um…If I think about it, I never really disliked him, you know." I say, just realizing the fact myself. "I think he barely uttered two words to me in all of the six years I've known him. So really, it'd be unfair to say I disliked him."

"Yeah…Pete's a bit shy around girls." James says.

"Hmm, I figured as much."

"And as far as Sirius Black is concerned, I think the fact that he calls himself Sirius 'Ladies Man' Black is a good enough explanation of why I was never really fond of him. He's too full of himself. Though even I have to agree, he _is _fiercely loyal," I finish.

I suddenly pick up the spoon from the table and point it at James again before threatening, "James Potter, if you tell Black I told you that, I swear to Merlin, I will make sure you have a slow and painful death."

I watch in satisfaction as James' hazel orbs widen in fear and he swallows before nodding his head. As I put the spoon down again, James says, "You know, Sirius is not that bad once you get to know him. Sure he is too crazy for his own good, but I guess that is what makes him Sirius Black. And you wanna know something, Evans?" he whispers, leaning his head closer to mine.

I bite my lip and lean forward too, so that our noses are almost touching. "I wouldn't exchange my crazy best friend for anything in the world. He has endured a lot, what with his entire family chanting their _Toujours Pur _mantra day and night; I would've been surprised if he _hadn't_ turned crazy by now. I never told Padfoot this, but I really admire him for standing up against his family. I can't tell you how lucky I am to have a friend like him, Lils." James says, smiling fondly at the thought.

At this point, I find a number of emotions raging through me - respect and guilt being the most prominent ones. Without giving my brain time to over analyze my actions, I take one of James' hands in both of mine and give it a reassuring squeeze. As he lifts up his gaze at me, I offer him the most heart-warming smile I can come up with and say, "I'm sorry. I never really thought of how bad it must've been for him. I guess I've been wrong in my judging of character." Then I look down at the floor and before I can help myself, I mutter, "I guess I'm pretty wont to do that."

"Hey," James lifts my chin up using his thumb and forefinger so that I am forced to look into his eyes once more. "I didn't mean to make you feel guilty. Please don't feel like you have to apologize for anything. But if you really feel that bad about it, you can do something for me." James lets go of my face and leans back in his chair once more before smirking and asking, "interested?" My mouth drops open as he wiggles his eyebrows suggestively and I smack his arm while shrieking, "James, you prat!"

As the two of us start laughing after that, I can't help but feel grateful to him, all the same. _I know he only joked to make me feel better._

"So…you were saying? Why exactly did you hate me?" James asks once the laughter dies down.

"Hate is a strong word, James. I know I've probably yelled at you a thousand times and said that I loathe you, but I don't think it was ever anything more than dislike. It just seemed to me like every time you talked, you took the word 'annoying' to a whole new level. I just felt that you needed to deflate your over-inflated head. A _lot._" I explain.

"And now?" James asks, bringing the chair back on all four legs again.

"Still needs deflating," I joke, laughing as he pouts indignantly.

"Oi! I resent that!"

"You would, wouldn't you?" I say before standing up and grabbing the empty box and spoons from the table.

"Where are you going, Lily?" James asks, grabbing my wrist and stopping me from exiting the kitchen.

"I think it's late enough. Any longer, and my Mum will be down to make breakfast for 'James honey'", I reply, imitating Mum's voice. _I think I did a pretty decent job, thank you very much._

"Someone's jealous." James teases, smirking at me.

"I have good reason to be," I mutter, pulling my wrist out of his grasp. "I'll just wash the spoons and make sure that I dispose all traces of this pure chocolate goodness endeavor before heading to bed alright? I'll be right back," I say over my shoulder and walk into the kitchen.

Making sure that I put the _Muffliato _spell before turning on the tap, I quickly wash both spoons and tiptoe out into the backyard to stealthily throw the empty box into the garbage bin. Impressed with my handiwork, I return back into the house and lift the spell from the kitchen before walking back to join James.

"James I'm done. Let's – " I manage to say before spotting the sleeping figure of a messy-haired teenage boy, with his hands placed under his head to act as cushions. I watch as his chest rises and falls with his even breathing and he slightly frowns as his glasses make it uncomfortable for him to sleep properly.

Unknowingly, my legs carry me over to James and I bend down beside his chair. Taking care to not wake up the bespectacled boy, I gently remove his glasses from his eyes and place them on the table. I smile involuntarily as his frown disappears and he settles himself in a more comfortable position. As James sighs contently, I find myself raising my hand and brushing locks of hair away from his eyes. Then, before my brain even processes my actions, I lean forward and place a soft kiss on his cheek.

"Lily…" James mumbles in his sleep, his voice bringing me crashing down to reality.

I clasp my hands over my mouth, effectively silencing the gasp that was about to escape my lips. Scrambling away from James, I quickly stand up and dash out of the kitchen, not even bothering to turn off the lights or wake up the sleeping figure on the dining table. With my heart pounding erratically in my chest, I somehow manage to make it to my room without waking up my entire family.

As soon as I shut the door behind me, I slide down on the floor, against the wood. After gaining some semblance of control in myself, I turn off the lights and shakily make my way to my bed before collapsing into it.

"Shit! Crap! Bloody hell!" I groan burying my face into the soft material of my covers. As I lay in my bed, desperately trying to fall asleep, a jungle of thoughts keep running through my mind, making the task practically impossible. But what scares me to no end is the fact that one absolutely crazy, unbelievable, shocking and bloody _frightening _question keeps popping up into my head –

_Am I falling for James Potter?_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Three cheers for the longest chapter yet, guys! I took quite some time to write down this chapter. I wasn't really sure whether I should've had Lily questioning her feelings for James in this chapter or the next. But then I was like, "oh why not? James has waited long enough, right?". Anyway, tell me what you guys think about this chapter. I'll be waiting for reviews. Love ya.

Claudia.


	21. The China Vase

**Summer Surprise**

**The China Vase**

Note – Most of the content in this chapter consists of Lily having a flashback. So instead of the usual, the entire flashback will be in italics and the normal font is her thoughts during the flashback.

* * *

_Run Run Run_

I dash out of the room, completely ignoring the two occupants inside - Especially trying to ignore one of them. I try to concentrate on the coordination of my legs, knowing all too well that I'll trip over my own clumsy feet if I don't. And I can_not _afford that right now!

_Run Run Run _

My chest heaves painfully at the lack of oxygen as I run. But I know better than to think that it is just from the running. Well, the fact that my body is not used to any sort of exercise also has a hand in my wheezing, but no – that is positively _not _the sole reason for my panting.

_Run Run Run_

As I run up the stairs, my heart thumping wildly against my rib cage, I hear footsteps behind me. Instead of stopping and turning around, like someone _normal _would do, I run with a speed that I never knew I had. Without even glancing over my shoulder, I know who it is, and I _most definitely _cannot let him catch up to me.

_Run Run Run_

Watching my bedroom door finally reach my line of vision, I start praying to Merlin, God and all other holy spirits that I make it to the other side of the door before _he _makes it to me. _Just a few more steps and I'll be there…_

"Lily! Wait, please," James' voice pleads from a distance – I cannot be bothered to know exactly how far that is. "We need to talk", he shouts, his voice clearly getting closer. _No, No, No! I cannot talk right now!_

In order to preserve any sanity left in me, – which is very less, by the way - I just need to get away from him. With that new found motivation, I promptly ignore his calls and all but lunge at the door, opening it with a _bang. _Not even wasting a millisecond, I scurry inside the room and _slam _the door close, but not before catching a glimpse of a messy-haired head coming up the stairs.

Once in the confines of my room, - _which thankfully doesn't bombard me with questions about my sanity. Because frankly, I can't defend myself_ - I slide down on the floor with my back pressed against the door. Sighing, I close my eyes and pull my hair in frustration before banging my head, repeatedly, against the wood.

_Holy Hippogriffs! What in Merlin's name just happened?!_

"Lily! Please open the door," James says, rapping his knuckles on the other side of the door.

I groan and put my face in my hands before replying in a muffled voice, "James, please leave me alone".

Surprisingly, he understands my incoherent muttering and pleads, "Well, don't lock yourself up in your room, damn it! Talk to me, Lils."

_Ha! That's the last thing I plan on doing. I can't even look him in the face right now…_

"I'll talk when I'm ready," I reply, knowing very well that I would take _quite _some time to be 'ready to talk'. "But please leave me alone for now, James". I pull my knees up against my chest and wrap my arms around them before groaning again.

"Fine," James says, surprising me by giving in so easily. But that surprise dissipates quickly when he speaks up after a few moments again. "But on one condition"

I can't help but roll my eyes at his obvious attempt at a dramatic pause. _Merlin, that boy doesn't know that some actions may seem inappropriate in certain situations. _I won't be surprised if he often ends up laughing at funerals. But just to humor him, I decide to give him the satisfaction by asking, "What condition?"

"Promise me that as soon as you make a decision, you will come and talk to me, regardless of what time it is," James answers. I sigh and rub my temples for a few seconds before relenting to his condition. "Alright. I promise".

I hear James sigh audibly from the other side of the door before he mutters an 'Okay' and his footsteps start fading down the hall. As soon as he leaves, I resume the action of banging my head against the door.

"Merlin's Beard! What did I _do?_ I screwed up _everything_", I complain, out loud to the empty room. Royally pissed off at myself, I lay down on my back, against the cold and hard floor, and start replaying The Foolish Actions of Lily Marie Evans in my mind –

_After that terrifying epiphany I had, that I may just be falling for James Potter, I did what smart witches such as myself do during stressful situations such as these – ignore the cause of the stress. So yes, I decided to ignore James Potter._

_Now, let me tell you, I am pretty experienced in that field. I've been ignoring James for the past six years of my life. Though the obvious problem in this scenario – James Potter lives in my house, which is nowhere near the size of the Hogwarts castle ergo not giving me enough places to hide from him. _

_But I still think I did a pretty impressive job of avoiding him; I managed to stay away from him, and consequently from my weird feelings for him, for _two whole days!_ I always stayed locked up in my room and only left to go to the bathroom and eat food. Obviously I had to make small talk with him during those meals and behave all lovey-dovey in front of Mum, Dad and Petunia. But I managed to escape from his sight as soon as my family left the room. _

_And despite my wishful thinking, who was I kidding? Of-bloody-course, James caught up to my act and just _had _to confront me about it. _Why couldn't he just have left me alone?

_Anyway, what happened was, this morning Mum was kind enough to tell me that I had to do vacuuming of the whole house while Petunia went for a ride in the Walrus' new sports car. Needless to say, by the time I was cleaning the hall downstairs, I was in an absolutely peachy mood (not). _

_And as fate would have it, just as I was through with the torture of having to vacuum anymore, James rounded the corner and grabbed my arm, turning me around to face him. I visibly cringed at his accusing expression, and without him having to say it, I already knew what was coming._

"_You've been avoiding me," James said, looking into my eyes. No doubt in his voice, no qualms in his eyes…a clear, confident statement. _

"_I don't know what you're talking about", I replied, looking away from his accusing glare._

"_Codswallop," James exclaimed, before lifting my chin up so that I had to look in his eyes again. "You can't even say that by looking into my eyes. And I'm sure you've probably bled you're lip by now". I clenched my hands into fists at the realization that I had indeed been biting my lips. _But just in case you're wondering, they were not bleeding.

"_Oh for Christ's sake, James," I said angrily, moving his hand away from my face. "Stop being so bloody perceptive! You think you know everything about me, when in reality, you know nothing." _

_Trying in vain to ignore the obvious hurt in his eyes, I turned around to leave. But James overtook me and blocked my path before I could so much as lift my feet from the ground. _Damn his persistent nature.

"_Why the hell are you over-reacting so much? Just tell me why you've been ignoring me," he tried again. _

"_I am not over-reacting," I shouted, hoping that Mum would come and put an end to this conversation. "I'm just pointing out the truth. Why do you always pretend that you know everything about me?" I continued, praying that he wouldn't realize that I was evading his question. _C'mon Mum…where are you?

"_Stop shouting. Your Mum's in the garage, so you're screaming like a banshee for nothing," James said with triumph in his voice. I stared at him, wide-eyed. _How the hell does he **do **that?

"_I know I'm perceptive and I know nothing about you and all that nonsense. So if we're done discussing that, please stop evading my question and just give a damn answer", he said, his voice rising with every word._

_But since I was used to such fights for the past few years, it hardly affected me. In fact, it made my blood boil with anger. "I don't have to do what you ask me to. I'll _not _answer if I don't want to". With that said, I tried to push past him and get to my room. But once again, fate was against me and it just _had _to make James so bloody strong!_

_He grabbed my arm and whirled me around before holding onto my shoulders so tightly that I couldn't move a muscle. "Please, Lily," he said calmly, though I could almost see the barely suppressed anger within him. "How am I supposed to know what I did if you don't even _tell_ me? As far as I remember, everything was fine that night when we talked. But then I wake up in the morning to find myself on the bloody dining table! You could've at least woken me up. Merlin, you didn't even turn off the lights! I was lucky that your Mum didn't catch me sleeping there. What the hell happened in so little time? Did I say something in my sleep or something?", James asked with an anxious expression on his face._

_And that broke my heart. There he was, thinking he did something wrong, when in fact, it was my stupid feelings that ruined everything. _Damn these feelings! Why did they always have to screw things up? _How could I tell him what really happened? He'll never understand. James would probably be ecstatic that I was finally falling for him. _

_But how could I tell him that I wasn't even sure about what I felt for him? How could I tell him that I was scared beyond my wits? Scared that maybe it was all just lust driven hormones and nothing else? Scared of all the complications that a possible relationship with him could bring? And most importantly, scared that he would change into the arrogant and conceited James Potter that I had known for the better part of my life?_

_I sighed heavily, the anger from moments ago replaced by guilt and frustration. "No. You didn't do anything. It's me. I just – ugh!", I finished, unable to say anything else._

"_You what, Lily?", James prodded, shaking my shoulders slightly. _

_I shook my head, suddenly feeling a strong urge to either kick James in the shin or snog him senseless. Deciding that neither of the two would be an appropriate course of action, I simply pried his hand off my shoulder, _with much difficulty may I add, _and took a step back from him. "I can't explain", I replied, staring at the floor._

"_Oh, Merlin", James exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air in frustration. I had a strong suspicion that if there was anyone else in my place, they would have been dead by now. But truthfully, I couldn't find it in myself to blame James. _I would've wanted to strangle myself to death too.

_Suddenly, James started advancing towards me in quick, long strides and I impulsively started walking backwards. "Why the bloody hell can't you explain? I won't just let you get away with ignoring me and not even giving me a valid reason for doing so. First you tell me that we're friends and then you suddenly don't even want to see me? What on earth is going on, Lily?"_

"_I don't need to explain myself to you", I said, still walking backwards, without any idea of where I was going. Even though my voice sounded confident and unwavering, I was internally whimpering at the intense glare James was giving me. _

"_Yes you very well do," He growled, slowing his pace but still continuing to walk towards me. Just as I was about to open my mouth to reply only Merlin-knows-what, because I very well don't, something else made the voice die down in my throat;_

**CRASH!**

_I gasped loudly before clamping my hands over my mouth and daring to turn around slowly. My eyes popped out my head and I gulped audibly when I saw the pieces of blue and white scattered all over the floor; The pieces that once used to be Mum's favorite China vase._

"_Oh, crap!," James cursed, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. _

Yup. That was definitely crap. Crap and poop and many other things that I care not to talk about. Mum was going to murder me. I remembered she practically had a fistfight with another lady over this vase. And now…it was broken! Someone better book a coffin for me soon.

"_What did you do?," James asked me frantically. _What the…?

"_Oi! What do you mean 'what did _I _do'? I wouldn't have crashed into it if you hadn't been advancing on me, in the first place," I retorted, my eyes flashing dangerously. _

"_Lily? Honey, what was that noise?", Mum's voice yelled from somewhere near the entrance. With eyes as wide as saucers, I stared at James, opening and closing my mouth like a fish. _Honestly Mum? You had to return **now**?

Wait a second…am I witch or what?

_Stuffing my hands into my pocket, I started looking for my wand, hoping that I'd be able to repair the blasted vase with a simple 'Reparo' before Mum found out. But when I realized that they were empty, I started panicking again. "Do you have your wand on you?" I asked James in a desperate voice. Seeing him shake his head no, my stomach dropped and I was on the verge of hyperventilating. _

"_Oh, bollocks", I whispered, biting my nails and fidgeting on the spot before a sudden idea hit me. Roughly grabbing James' arm, I started pulling him with me and said, "Come with me. We need to hide if you don't want to die from my Mum's wrath"._

* * *

"_Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, we could just tell her that we know how to repair it, right?", James asked me while peeping outside through the small opening between the two doors._

_Due to my brilliant plan, we were cramped inside a small empty cupboard at the very end of the hallway. And I would like to admit that with James practically pressed up against me, my hormones were going haywire. _

_With the breaking of that wretched China vase, our argument had been pushed to the back of our minds and we were desperately trying to escape the fury of my Mum. _Well at least I was. James didn't have so much experience with an angry Mummy Evans. No wonder he was suggesting that we leave the confines of the cupboard.

"_What on earth? LILY MARIE EVANS! YOU COME OUT HERE AT ONCE, YOUNG LADY!", Mum's voice bellowed from across the hall, making me cower slightly, even though I knew she couldn't see me._

"_On second thoughts, maybe we _should _stay here for a few moments. Wait for her to calm down, you know?", James suggested, apprehensively glancing outside. _

"_I KNOW YOU BROKE THIS VASE, LILY. STOP HIDING AND COME OUT", Mum screamed at the top of her lungs. I shut my eyes and gulped in fear before opening them again and finding James going purple in the face from trying to control his laughter._

"_Think this is very funny, do you?" I asked through clenched teeth. _

_James simply stuffed his fist in his mouth to stifle his guffaws, making me roll my eyes in response. "I'm sorry," he managed to say after regaining his composure. "But this entire ordeal _is _pretty amusing". I snorted at him. _Yeah, right. Sorry my arse.

_After some extremely agonizing minutes of her shrieking, Mum decided to leave the hall and hunt me down herself. As soon as her footsteps faded away, I heaved a sigh of relief and shook my head. Suddenly, I realized something and started snickering quietly._

_When James looked at me like I was going loony, I whispered, "I just realized that Mum didn't even think about calling you. She just _assumed _that I broke the vase. Am I her child or what?"_

"_Or what," James replied and then we both started chortling as quietly as we could. After gaining our composures, James looked me seriously in the eye, throwing me off-guard, and said, "Listen, Lily. I'm sorry for shouting at you. I shouldn't have pressured you like that. It's just that…I was getting really upset 'cause you weren't speaking with me"._

_My heart fluttered and stomach flip-flopped at his words. I wanted to tell him how he didn't have to apologize and how it should have been me who apologized. I also wanted to tell him that he had every right to shout at me and I was just behaving like a total dork. I swear to Merlin I wanted to say all those things. But I don't know why my brain misinterpreted my intentions and instead made me do something entirely different; I fisted my hand around James' shirt collar and brought his lips slamming down to meet mine._

_But once I initiated it, I couldn't stop – my hormones wouldn't _let _me stop. I could feel James standing shocked-still against me. _I didn't blame the boy one bit. I was pretty surprised myself. _But once the shock wore off and he reciprocated, I swear it made my knees buckle. It was much, much different than all the other little kisses we had shared before._

_It was as if he was pouring all his passion inside that one kiss. I couldn't think properly, let alone act sensibly – _Not that I was doing a great job of that before, anyway._ Fearing that my legs would give out from the intensity of the kiss, I tightly wrapped my arms around James' neck and tangled my fingers into his soft locks._

_As he placed his hands on my hips and his tongue made its way inside my mouth, I involuntarily moaned against him. _And Merlin, that was it. It drove him crazy. _Backing us a little, he pinned me up against the wood of the cupboard and deepened our kiss in such a manner that I started fearing that I would pass out._

_Just as I was gaining a little control when James tore his lips away from mine, he squashed even that little bit of sanity left in me and started trailing kisses from my jaw to my neck. I moaned softly as he hit a particularly sensitive spot on the side of my neck and unknowingly tightened my grip on his hair. After he captured my mouth in his again, I slightly gasped against his lips when I felt his hand crawling underneath the hem of my t-shirt. _

_My eyes finally snapped open and the realization of exactly what was happening fully hit me. Panting embarrassingly hard, I somehow managed to push James off of me. I watched as he slowly opened his eyes as well and then realization dawned on him. But unlike my expression, he was positively glowing. _Figures!

"_Oh, fuck!", I cursed before covering my face with my hands. Since I never really got to see his expression, I can only guess how shocked James must've been to hear Lily Evans using the f-word. But I could've cared less at that point._

_As if on cue, the cupboard door was suddenly wrenched open by Mum as she reprimanded, "Did I just hear you use that horrendous word, Lily?"_

_Oh, I could've kissed Mum right there – _if I wasn't sure that she was going to kill me in a few minutes – _for saving me from having to endure the awkwardness with James Potter in an empty cupboard. So to show my gratitude, I decided to answer all her questions like the good girl I am (not)._

_I nodded my head in response to her question. "And did you break my China vase, Lily?", she asked, placing her hands on her hips. Nod again._

"_Please Mrs. Evans", James stepped in. "It was as much my fault as it was Lily's"._

"_Oh James, dear. You don't have to take the blame for her. I'm sure she must've dragged you into this. I know how clumsy Lily can get," Mum said. I would've rolled my eyes at this point if my brain wasn't still in coma. _

_I watched from the corner of my eye as James tried to contradict Mum again. But I was too tired. I just wanted to escape from James Potter. So I raised my hand to silence him and decided to do the one thing I had been doing a lot recently – I lied. "It's okay, James. You don't have to cover up for me. Yes, Mum. I broke that vase. And I'm sorry". I made sure not to bite my lip this time. _Ha! Take that, Potter!

_Then seeing her open her mouth to chide me again, I hastily continued, "But I swear I can fix it up with magic. It's a really simple spell". _

_After a lot of consideration, Mum sighed and said, "Despite the fact that you made me run all around the house looking for you, you _did _finish all that vacuuming, answered all my questions and have promised to fix the vase. So I've decided to forgive you this time"._

"_Thanks, Mum," I replied half-heartedly. Desperate to get out of there, I started to leave again when Mum suddenly asked, "Lily, why is your hair so mussed up?"_

Galloping Gargoyles! Damn James Potter!

_Blushing like a beetroot and determinedly ignoring the 17-year old boy next to me, I quickly mumbled, "I was leaning against the wood in the cupboard…it must've somehow gotten all tangled." _

"_Oh alright! And please don't let me hear you use curse words again, Lily, or I'll have to threaten you with salad again", Mum chuckled. _No…not the salad! _I quickly replied, "Yes, Mum" and started to leave the room._

_Then realizing that James would follow me as soon as I left, I turned around once again and said, "Oh and Mum? James said he was feeling really sick. I tried to convince him to tell you, but he didn't because he thought you would get worried". _

_And as expected, Mum started cooing, "Oh James, honey…that's really sweet of you. But you should've told me that you were sick. How are you feeling?". _Well at least all that nauseatingly sweet stuff had **some **benefits.

_This was the _exact_ opportunity I was looking for and as soon as Mum had James trapped in a conversation about his health, I made a run for it. Deciding that it would be best if I kept my mind occupied with something else _other _than bloody amazing Quidditch players and their snogging abilitites, I started chanting in my mind – _

_Run Run Run_

* * *

I sigh and close my eyes for a few seconds before finally getting up from the floor. Glancing at the clock, I realize that I had been in my room for over an hour and that Mum would be ambushing me any minute to repair her vase.

I pick up my wand from my bedside table and walk towards the door before wrenching it open and stepping out into the hallway. Reaching downstairs, I spot the pieces of the vile and nasty vase still scattered on the floor and flick my wand and mutter, _"Reparo"_. Instantly, all the pieces come together and form an innocent looking vessel.

As I pick the intricate piece of China from the ground and place it on the table, I realize that it is about time that I kept my part of the promise and go talk to James. With that frightening thought in mind, my legs carry me up the stairs again, before stopping in front of the guest bedroom door.

_Curse that bloody China Vase!_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **There you go, fellas. Another chapter done…long one too! Anyway, please don't kill me for not having Lily realize that she loves James yet…I need to take it slow. She hated him for six years after all. So please have patience and bear with me. I hope the 'going to the past' thing wasn't very confusing! I tried to not make it too serious and dull. Anyway, the next chapter is pretty important, guys. I would love reviews, as usual. And thanks to all those lovely people out there who are continuously following/favoriting Summer Surprise. Love you guys! You rock!

Claudia


	22. Hurt

**Summer Surprise**

**Hurt**

* * *

_Come on, Lily Evans, you can do this._

…

_Merlin, I can't do this._

Standing in front of the guest bedroom door, with a decision made up in my mind, I can't find it in myself to actually raise my fist and knock on the door. Or rather, face the consequences of carrying out that action.

I sigh and shake my head at myself - _Merlin only knows why I was sorted into Gryffindor. _With a new found confidence to prove my bravery, I take a deep breath and raise a fist to knock on the door. Just as my knuckles are about to connect with the wood, I hear voices coming from inside.

_Shit. Not again!_

Unable to contain my curiosity at what I would hear this time, I instinctively move towards the door and press my ear against it to get a better access to the conversation going on –

" – brilliant snog", I hear James' voice saying. _Brilliant snog?_ _Bloody hell, this cannot be happening…_

My jaw drops to the floor and my face immediately heats up at his words. If James came in front of me right now, I probably wouldn't hesitate to curse him into the next century. I already feel my blood boiling as I realize that he had been telling – probably Black – about that kiss in the cupboard. And _he is very well not supposed to be doing that! _Granted; that kiss _was _bloody brilliant, but still – UGH!

_But you told him that he could share things with his best mate, Lily. _A small voice in the back of my head reminds me. Bubbling with fury and frustration, I immediately silence it by arguing that every single personal detail _does not _need to be shared. _Especially not when it concerns me!_

"You need to get your head examined, mate. Please don't tell me that you honestly expect me to believe that Lily Evans, the girl who would have liked nothing more than for you to get hit on the head by a bludger and bash your brains out only a few weeks back, kissed you willingly", Sirius says, bringing my mind out of 'James Potter's slow and painful death strategies'.

I rub my temples and sigh softly. For the first time in my entire life - _and hopefully the last time, too – _I can't help but agree with Sirius Black. I can't believe what I did, myself. It _does_ sound pretty unrealistic. _Maybe I've been possessed… _

"It took me two whole days to actually grasp the fact that you were dating. As _friends_," Black snorts, snapping me out of my reverie again. "But this whole snog-fest thing is taking it too far, Prongs. Are you sure you weren't hallucinating or day-dreaming again?"

_**Again**__? How often does James day-dream about such stuff? _I wonder with curiosity. _Well I __**do**__ catch him spacing out quite a lot…_

Pondering over that thought, I unknowingly move away from the door slightly and miss James' reply. But I _do_ catch his indignant tone and conclude that he denied Black's accusations. _I won't be surprised if he lied though. _

"I'm done trying to convince you, Padfoot. Believe what you will." I hear James' exasperated voice say. "I asked Lily to talk to me once she made up her mind…about two hours ago, I think. Merlin knows what that girl's thinking so much about. It's obvious that she fancies me. Who wouldn't?".

_Merlin's Beard! James 'Arrogant-toe rag' Potter is back!_

"You never know," Black replies, surprising me. "She could just be looking for a good snog". Scratch that; he didn't surprise me. I visibly shake with anger at the type of conversation they were having about me. Clearly, neither of them think very highly of me. _And just when I thought that they were decent human beings._

I almost come to the verge of bursting from hysteria when I hear muffled snickers coming from inside. _Bloody Black-haired Marauders!_

"Okay, Sirius. Go now. I'm gonna go and remind Lily of her promise. Hopefully she's realized the obvious truth by now. See you later, mate. Bye." James says.

As soon as I hear Black respond, "Bye, Prongs", my anger explodes and I promptly kick open the door. After observing James' stupefied expression for a moment, I turn around and close the door before whipping out my wand and casting a _Muffliato _spell. _Oh yes, there is some shouting I need to do._

"Ho-how much did you hear, Lily?" James stammers, his voice cautious.

"Oh, I heard quite a lot." I reply, crossing my arms across my chest and glaring at him menacingly.

"Listen, Lils. I can explain –," James starts. Seeing the doubtful expression on his face and remembering his conversation with Black, I realize that there isn't much _left _to explain. So I just cut him off, saving both of us a great deal of time –

"There isn't anything _left _to explain. You know that as well as I do, Potter," James' cringes at my use of his last name. But I could care less about that right now. "Just when I thought that you had changed and made you my friend, you had to go and say all those things, didn't you?" I scream.

"Friends?," James splutters disbelievingly. "_Friends _don't go around snogging like that, Lily. Merlin, you're such a hypocrite!"

"It's not like we hadn't kissed before, James! This one shouldn't have been any different. You didn't have _any _right to go gossip with Sirius Black about how 'Lily Evans must be out of her mind to not kiss James Potter's shoes!'" I shriek at him.

"Oh cut the crap, Lily," James replies, his volume almost as loud as mine. "You know _very _well that that kiss was _completely _different than the others. Let me remind you that _you _were the one who kissed me first this time, not the other way 'round. _And _you didn't have to kiss me, either. None of your family members were there to watch us. If anything, you had a good reason _not _to kiss me. We were _hiding _there for Merlin's sake."

My heart pounds loudly in my chest at his words. Despite all my efforts at trying to prove him wrong, I can't find a single thing he said to be incorrect. _God I hate it when he's right!_

"Fine. I slipped, alright?", I shout, throwing my hands up in admittance. "I kissed you. And now I realize what a big mistake it was."

I watch as James' expression changes from frustration to hurt in a split second and he strides over to me before holding my hands in his warm ones and looking imploringly into my eyes. "Please don't say that, Lily," he whispers. "I'm sorry. I just wanted you to realize that you _do _fancy me. I meant what I told Sirius. It's just the _way _I said it was wrong. I admit it".

"That's exactly the problem, isn't it?" I say, my voice a bit softer than before as I wrench my hands away from his grasp. I look at the floor, trying to avoid the hurt evident in his hazel eyes as I say, "You _meant _what you said. It was as if you couldn't believe why I wasn't worshipping you by now. And then Black made that comment about me only wanting a good snog. You guys were laughing at me, for Merlin's sake!"

"It was just a joke Lils," James tries to convince me. "You _know _how Sirius is. He didn't really mean it."

"Yes I _know _he didn't mean it. But it sounded awful anyway. And I'm not mad at him or you, okay? I'm mad at_ myself _for even thinking that you had changed."

"I _have _changed, Lily. I really have. I spent all these days trying to prove that to you. Please don't ruin that by being in denial."

"Denial?" I scoff at him. "Denial of what, James? I am starting to think that everything you did for these past few days was just a show for me. After what I heard, I won't be surprised if it was. So you might as well just admit it"

"No. I'm not going to admit it because it's not the truth," James starts raising his voice again. "And please don't tell me that you didn't feel anything other than friendship for me in the past three weeks or so. Because if you do, _that _is what is denial, Lily Evans."

"You know what? I am not going to waste my breath on trying to contradict you because you are too full of yourself to realize that you're wrong. I'll appreciate it if you leave me alone." I say before turning around to exit the room.

I feel James' hand wrapping around my upper arm before he whirls me around to face him. "You're not going anywhere," he growls. "I've waited for the past four years for you to come to your senses and now that you have come so close to realization, I _won't _let you run away from it and start avoiding me again."

I try in vain to free my hand from his grasp. Finally giving up, I glare at James and say tersely, "I am _not _running away from anything, okay? Don't make it seem like I am."

"Is that so, Lily? Then tell me why you have been ignoring me for the past two days. Tell me it had nothing to do with your feelings for me. Tell me you felt _nothing _after all these days I spent with you. Tell me that that is _not _the reason you were trying to avoid me. Tell me that you were not scared, Lily!" James screams, his grip on my arm tightening with his rising voice.

"If you really think that you know everything, Potter, then why pretend like you don't? If you think you understand me _so _well, then why the hell are you pestering me with questions whose answers you apparently know?" I retort, trying my best to not let my voice waver. The fact that scares me the most is that everything James mentioned before was absolutely true, making my heart thump wildly in my chest.

"Because I want _you _to admit it, damn it! That's what matters," He yells, shaking me slightly.

"James, you're hurting me." I suddenly whisper, unable to control the pain anymore. His hazel orbs immediately soften and he quickly retracts his hand. I watch as he gasps softly when he notices the bruise forming on my upper arm and looks at me, his expression full of regret and self-loathing.

"Bloody hell," James curses softly, taking a few steps back. "I am _so _sorry, Lily. I – I didn't mean to… I mean I lost control and – ugh! I never meant to hurt you. I really am sorry." I only mange to nod my head in response as I realize that even before his apology, I knew without a doubt that James would rather die than try to hurt me intentionally.

_Is that normal?_

And before my brain even has time to process my actions, the words are tumbling out of my mouth; "Why? Why does it matter _so _much if I admit it or not, James?" I ask, searching his eyes for something that I don't even know.

Despite the fact that I know why it matters to him – _probably because a relationship needs to include two people in it – _I can't help but feel that there is something more in his eyes. That desperate and longing look in those hazel depths and that wave of regret on his face when he realized that he'd hurt me just makes me feel that his answer will not be something that I am expecting.

_And boy, he doesn't disappoint me…_

"Because I love you!" James whispers, placing his warm hand on my cheek.

_Thud. _My jaw drops to the floor. I had always known that James had a humongous crush on me and everything but…this? _Love? _Merlin knows such stuff only happen in sappy romance novels! He is only a seventeen year old teenager; how on _earth _can he know what love is? And he loves _me? Me? _I didn't even consider him as my friend till this summer and…James Potter _loves _me?

_I think I need to sit down…_

"What?" I ask stupidly, finally finding my voice. Looking up at him, I get shocked to see James so confident with what he said that I have to change what _I_ said. "James, you…you couldn't _possibly _lo –"

" – Don't tell me that I don't love you," James cuts me off. "I know what I'm talking about, alright? I know what you're gonna say – that this is all just some school crush and I am probably making a big deal out of it. But you know what, Lily? I have _never _been surer of anything I have said before. I know for a fact that I love you. I realized I love you in fifth year. Hell, I probably loved you long before that but I just didn't realize it then. But when I did, I _knew _I was right. There was no other explanation."

"B-but you're only seventeen an-and it's not…possible for…l-love?" I stammer disbelievingly.

"So _what _if I'm seventeen? That doesn't make it any less real, Lily. I _know_ I want to be with you forever."

_Holy Hippogriffs! Forever? Oh Merlin…this is going too fast! Here I am, unable to sort out my feelings for him and he tells me that he has been in love with me for two years and wants to be with me forever? _

Going into panic mode, I take a few steps away from James before whispering, "We can't be together." Then realizing that I sounded completely unsure of myself, – _which I __**am. **__But I need to sound confident for my sake – _I repeat loudly, "We can't be together, okay? It's not right!"

"Why?" whispers James in a pleading voice.

"_Why?_ Because I'm not going to have a relationship based on a lie, James, _that's _why," I reply, letting out a few of my fears with words. "I played this entire charade just to annoy Petunia. For all I know, I might be still trying to annoy her without really realizing it." I say. _Wow…that sounds lamer than it did in my head. _

"Bollocks! Don't bring your sister into this. I _know _you know that it has nothing to do with her anymore." James says, moving closer to me. I can't find it in myself to contradict him this time; I realize it stopped being about Petunia a _long _time back.

I suddenly start fearing that I would lose my mind – _or whatever's left of it – _if James didn't stop being right all the time. It is becoming extremely difficult to breathe with everything that's happening!

"No no no! I – I…what if it's all just lust, huh?" I ask, finally confessing one of my bigger fears. "We're teenagers, James. It's only normal. But I can't have a relationship based on lust. No. I _won't _have a lust-driven relationship."

_Especially not with you, _I add in my mind, surprising even myself.

And that is when I realize that the reason for my not wanting to be with James – _apart from being scared shitless_ - is that I can't bear to lose him. These past few days have brought me much closer to James Potter than I would have liked. And after losing Petunia and Severus as friends, I won't be able to handle it if I have a relationship with James and it doesn't work out. I just _can't _take the risk of having my heart broken all over again.

_And I know for a fact that if I take that risk, it's going to be much worse than before. _

"Don't make me laugh, Lils," James scoffs, breaking me out of my train of thoughts. "Do you honestly believe that it could all be just teenage lust? Sure, there may be quite a bit of physical attraction involved, but that _definitely _does not mean that it's _only _lust." With that said James moves forward and places his warm hand on my cheek before resting his forehead against mine, his hazel eyes piercing my green ones.

James' pine trees and sandalwood scent makes my mind go fuzzy and my stomach flip-flops. My heart leaps to my throat when I feel his warm breath tingling my lips as he whispers, "I know there is lust, Lily. Believe me I do. But be honest with yourself…is that only thing you find?"

I find my heart beating painfully hard against my ribcage as if to say 'No. Definitely not.' But I know I have to do this; even if it means lying to those beautiful, pleading eyes of his. So, making sure that I don't bite my lips, I swallow and push him away from me before saying, "I don't know, okay? Will you just stop trying to look for something that isn't there? I told you I can't be with you. How hard can it be for your brain to process that information, James? Please don't do this. Why can't we just be friends?" I plead.

_Please agree to it, James! __**Please!**_

"We were _never _friends, Lily!" James shouts, throwing his hands up in the air. "I can _never _think of you as just a friend. There will always be something more. Don't you realize that? For a smart girl, Evans, you really are quite thick. We shared two kisses ever since we became 'friends', even though we obviously didn't _have_ to."

I sigh wistfully before putting my head in my hands and shaking my head. "What is the problem, Lily?" James asks adamantly. "Tell me. Why don't you want to be with me? You're not even giving me a proper reason, for Merlin's sake!"

As I open my mouth to say some sort of rubbish in response, James looks at me with an extremely hurt expression in his eyes as he says, "_Unless, _you – you never gave me a chance. You never really got rid of 'James Potter the prat' image from your head, did you? Did you, Lily?"

_Bloody hell. This is getting so out of control._

My brain runs at a speed of hundred miles a minute as I try to form an answer to James' question. If I lie and tell him that I didn't give him a chance, it is going to break his heart. On the other hand, if I say I did, there is the risk that I will find myself getting closer to James more than ever. And when that relationship breaks – _which it obviously will. We're bloody seventeen year old teenagers! - _ it is going to damage me beyond repair.

Taking a deep breath, I make up my mind. _  
_

_I'm sorry, James. But it is for the best...I hope._

"You're right. Maybe I didn't. And maybe I will never be able to really trust you." I finally reply with a heavy heart, the words cutting through my throat like a knife. "You spend six years of your life torturing and hexing people who didn't even deserve it, _Potter_. Who is to say that you've actually changed? For all I know, you might just be pretending to...to love me, when really, all you want is for me to fall at your feet so that you can claim me as your trophy! So I hope you'll excuse me if I don't comply to your wishes."

Absolutely disgusted with myself and knowing that I won't be able to endure the inevitable hurt in James' eyes, I shut my own and look away. But that proves to be useless when I hear the evident pain in his voice. "Is...is that what you really think about me?"

_Please don't make this any harder than it already is, James!_

"I do." I reply, unable to keep my voice from shaking and refraining from biting my lip at the last minute. But I doubt that he notices it when I don't hear James' voice for quite a few minutes. Cautiously, I open my eyes, afraid of finding something that would break my almost non-existent confidence. But what I do see leaves me stunned –

James closes his trunk with a _thunk_ and picks it up before looking up at me. I almost gasp as I see his empty eyes and blank expression. "I'm sorry, Evans. But I can't keep up this charade anymore. I hope you understand that. I will be grateful if you thank your parents for letting me stay here. You are free to make up any story you like about our break-up and write me a letter if you want me to play any part in the convincing." He says, his voice cold and hollow.

"James," I whisper, trying to tell him how sorry I am.

"Goodbye, Evans" James says, refusing to even look me in the eyes anymore. He picks up his broom from the corner of the room before walking over to the window. I want to scream and tell him that I don't want him to go, that I want him to stay with me. But I keep my mouth shut, knowing that hurting myself now would be better than hurting myself when I get too attached. _If I haven't already, that is. _

As James glances in my direction one last time before casting a _disillusionment_ charm and mounting his broomstick, I try to convey all my feelings to him in that one glance. My heart breaks to a million pieces as I watch him throw his infamous invisibility cloak – _James showed it to me a few days after we became 'friends' – _on his broomstick before his vague outline disappears from my view.

With a shuddering breath, I slide down on the floor and rest my head against the foot of the bed. Filled to the brim with self-loathing, I unknowingly dig my nails into my palms, drawing a little blood. But that pain is nothing compared to the storm raging inside of me.

For the first time in my entire life, I try to cry; try to release some of the pain building up inside me as each moment passes without the messy-haired boy. I try to force the tears to come to my eyes and spill on my cheeks. I try to yell so that I can let go of some frustration that is ripping me up from inside.

But my voice refuses to work, my muscles refuse to move and my eyes remain empty. So I sit on the floor, feeling more lonely and broken than ever before in my life as I wait for the numbness to take over my brain as well.

_I think it was too late to not get attached after all…_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Sad isn't it? Was the argument too boring to read? I tried not to make it sound too repetitive though. Anyway, please don't plan on killing me yet guys. I know I probably behaved very evilly by making them break-up…but you know as well as I do that they will get together. Hopefully in the next 3 chapters (wink). So please leave some reviews for me about what you thought about this chapter. Again, I would like to thank those awesome people who are following/favoriting this story. Love you guys…

Claudia.


	23. The Truth Is Out

**Summer Surprise**

**The Truth Is Out**

* * *

"Lily…come out, honey. It's been an entire day. You're scaring me!" Mum's worried voice barely reaches my ears.

I sit on my bed with the covers drawn up to my chest and my head resting on the headboard behind me. Glancing at the clock, I find that it's four o'clock in the evening and barely register the fact that I haven't eaten anything in 24 hours as my stomach growls loudly.

I gulp and lick my dry lips, realizing that it has also been 24 hours since _he _left.

Sighing for the umpteenth time in those excruciating hours, I go back to staring at the wall opposite me, letting the numbness take over my body and mind again.

"LILY! Open the door at once. I can't take this anymore. I can't even find Jam –" I tune her out, placing my hands over my ears. It's…painfulto hear _his _name.

Ever since _he _left, I have barricaded myself in my room, trying my best to bawl my eyes out or fall asleep – _To escape from this agonizing reality…even if it's just for a few hours. _But other than obtaining dark, sleepless bags under my eyes, my plan has failed spectacularly.

Despite knowing that it will be as useless as it has been before, I still try to force myself to fall asleep by closing my eyelids. _Maybe it will work this time…_

My eyes suddenly snap open as a loud banging noise enters my ears. Once I realize that the sound is being made by Mum pounding on the door, my shoulders slump – _whether in relief or disappointment; I don't know – _and I continue staring at the oh-so interesting wall in front of me.

_Isn't this what I wanted? _I think sadly._ James Potter leaving me alone was I wanted since third year, wasn't it?_

I shake my head and scoff at myself. _This summer has changed everything so drastically…and all I care about is what my 13 year-old self would feel? _Hating myself much more than I care to admit, I start contemplating whether it would be too much if I begin banging my head against the wall until I spill my brains out. _Probably not. _

My stomach growls again and I start feeling slightly dizzy. But after deciding that a) I definitely deserve this and b) I won't be able to swallow a single morsel anyway, I don't move from my spot on the bed. I hear some whispers coming from outside but promptly ignore them, figuring out that it's probably just Mum.

_But I'm wrong…_

"Lily…open the door!" Petunia calls from outside. I almost fall out of my bed in surprise when I hear the softness in her voice. _Almost. _But I don't. My heart feels so empty and aches so much that I can't manage to feel anything. Anything at all.

Deciding that the least I could do to show my gratitude is to open the door, I sigh and get up from the bed. After swaying for a few moments from dizziness, I lifelessly walk across the room and unlock the door, letting Petunia in. If it had been some other time, I would've taken a few moments to appreciate Petunia's concern for me. But all I manage to do right now is walk back towards my bed and resume my position.

From the corner of my eye, I watch my sister turn around and close the door before cautiously making her way towards me. "You're not crying." She observes unnecessarily. Again, I would've rolled my eyes at her, but the only thing I do is stare at the wall opposite me. After pausing for a few moments, she mumbles something under her breath that sounds like 'Shit. This is worse'. I ignore her. Until –

"Alright. Tell me what your freakboyfriend did." She says, sitting on my bed, blocking my view of the wall, my sole companion for the past 24 hours.

I clench my teeth in anger – _Wow…I still have some emotions left – _and suddenly feel a strong urge to curse Petunia for calling Ja-_him _a freak. "He didn't do anything. And _don't _call him a freak," I growl. Seeing Petunia's eyebrows shoot up in surprise, I sigh and add in a softer tone, "It was all my fault. We had a fight and then he left." I say honestly.

Petunia stares at me for a few seconds, contemplating my response, before asking, "So you're saying that you know it's your fault?" I nod my head exasperatedly. _Wasn't she listening?_ "Then why the hell don't you go apologize to him? He loves you. He'll forgive you." She says with a confused expression on her face.

_How does she know…?_

I scrutinize Petunia, trying to figure out whether she heard our conversation or not. No. That's impossible. I'm sure I had put on the spell. Then how? "Petunia, how do you know that he loves me?" I ask finally.

My sister gapes at me with such an incredulous expression, that I can't help but run a hand over my face, making sure I didn't grow an extra head or something. "Are you _really _that dumb?" She asks, finally finding her voice. _Gee, thanks Petunia. That makes me feel really special._

Once she realizes that I'm not going to grace her with a response, – _Duh! – _she shakes her head and continues, "Have you even _seen _how that guy looks at you, Lily? He could be in a room surrounded with girls wearing bikinis and he _still _wouldn't notice anyone except you, despite what you might be wearing. He's so obviously in love with you that the only way he could make it more apparent is if he screams it out on the top of his lungs. I can't believe – " I raise my hand to stop her. Hearing all of this only adds to the stabbing pain in my heart. And guilt. So much guilt that it's suffocating me.

"Now tell me why you're not with him right now, apologizing for what you did." Petunia demands, crossing her bony arms across her chest.

I gulp and close my eyes as the guilt finally drowns me in itself. The truth is, even after all this time, I still don't know if I want to be with him. No. Scratch that. I _definitely _want to be with him. But I don't know if I will be able to handle the heartbreak if it doesn't work out. If the present is any indication, then I will most _certainly_ not be able to handle it. I just wish that someone would reassure me that things would work out. Because with James Potter, as I've noticed, nothing is certain.

_Except the fact that he loves you_, a small voice in the back of my head adds.

I groan and put my head in my hands. "I don't know what to do, Petunia," comes my muffled reply. "I've royally messed up things. It's just so…frustrating and…confusing!" I sigh and look up at her with a desperate expression. "He'll never forgive me anyway. I broke his heart so badly. Hell, even _I _wouldn't forgive myself." I say, realizing that it's probably true.

"Oh, c'mon!" Petunia snorts. "It can't be _that _bad."

After catching my, 'you wanna bet?' expression, she adds, "Alright. Spill. What did you do?"

_Ha! If only she knew __**exactly **__what I've done. _

…

_Why can't she?_

I suddenly realize that I don't give a damn if Petunia finds out the truth anymore. It'll probably rid me of some of this guilt anyway. Right now, keeping up this wretched lie is the last thing on my mind. I could care less about what she thinks of me. And whatever she _would, _is probably the truth. I am a cold, heartless witch who was too stubborn and proud to just admit to her sister that she didn't have a boyfriend! I deserve whatever she throws my way…

"I lied." After a pause, I add, "To you…Mum…_and _to Dad. I lied to everyone."

"You lied?" Petunia repeats uncertainly. "Lied about _what _exactly?"

"About everything." I almost shout. "He was _not _my boyfriend. I made all that up just so I could annoy you, okay? And he…he…he helped me do it. Without even questioning once!" I clench my hands into fists, so disgusted with myself that I feel like throwing up.

"You WHAT?" Petunia shrieks, immediately shooting up from my bed as if it has been infested by bugs. I sigh at her predictable behavior and mutter ashamedly, "You heard me. It was all a charade."

For a few moments, Petunia just stares at me with a furious expression on her face as I expected her to. But what throws me off-guard is when her expression changes to one of defeat. "You know what this means don't you, Lily?"

"What?" I ask tentatively, still unsure of how to act.

"We can never actually get along together. I mean, you made up this _entire _lie just so that you could annoy me," she says. Feeling even more horrible than I would have if she would've just shouted at me, I open my mouth to apologize when she cuts me off –

"No. Don't apologize. I just want to tell you that I also came here to talk to you only because Mum bribed me. She said that I could go to Gloria's party if I did this. So you're not alone." Petunia finishes with a sigh. Surprisingly, her confession makes me feel ten times better and the guilt reduces a little.

"So…?" I prod, unsure of where this leaves us now.

"So I guess the deal's off. We can be hostile to each other again." She says nonchalantly, though I'm sure I catch a hint of fondness in her voice. And I admit – _I was missing being rude to Petunia. _"But since I fulfilled my promise, I get to go to the party… MUM!" Petunia suddenly bellows, haughtily flicking her blond hair over her shoulder and strutting out of the room.

I sigh in relief. _That went better than I thought it would._

But only a few seconds later, she sticks her head back inside and says, "I won't tell Mum and Dad that you lied by the way." My eyes almost pop out of their sockets at her sudden angelic act. But they stay put when she continues, "_If _you don't tell Mum that I told you about her bribing me. And that I did a good job of consoling you."

Once I nod my head at her in response and she disappears from my view, satisfied with my answer, I almost smile as I softly say, "You _did _do a good job of consoling me, Tuney."

But I just can't manage to smile. Not yet. Not until this weight is lifted from my heart. Not until _he _forgives me. _If _he ever forgives me. I close my eyes and rest my head against my pillow, too exhausted to even think properly anymore.

With some of the guilt tearing my heart gone, I manage to actually fall asleep this time. But my mind still remains occupied with the thoughts of a certain messy-haired wizard till the last moment, before the exhaustion and numbness pulls me into a deep slumber.

* * *

"Lily! Lily…wake up"

I groan in protest as I feel someone shaking me slightly. My head pounds and I feel dizzy from hunger. But more than that, I feel too exhausted to open my eyes. So I bury my face in my pillow, trying to delay getting up and experiencing the heart-wrenching reality again.

"Lily…someone's here to meet you, honey." Mum's voice whispers in my ear.

_Meet me? Who's here to meet me? _I wonder in my half-conscious state of mind. Groggily, I sit up on the bed and stare at Mum, blinking my eyes a few times to get rid of the colorful spots blocking my vision. Once my eyesight returns to normal, I realize that it's already twilight and glance at the clock to find that its 7:37 in the evening.

"Do you want me to send him up here?" Mum asks me, brushing some strands of hair away from my face. For a fleeting second, I wonder why she's being so extra nice to me. Then I realize that it's probably because she thinks that I had a break-up and I am wallowing in self-pity. I barely manage to control the derisive snort at that thought. _If only she knew that it's not self -pity…its self-loathing!_

I slowly nod my head in response, the pain returning to torture me with full force.

"Lily, I really think you need to eat something. You haven't touched food since yest – "

"No, Mum. I don't want to eat. Please, just send whoever it is up here." I plead, hoping that she will understand. _And she does…_

I watch as Mum sighs and turns around before exiting the room. Getting up from my bed, I gently walk over to the window, not wanting to increase my headache any further.

I watch the stars and moon in the sky, bathing the world with light in the semi-darkness. _If only he was here. _Suddenly straightening up, I dig my nails into my already wounded palms in anger. _It's my own fault that he's not here. _

"Okay, Evans. Spit it out. What the fuck did you do to him?" A cold, angry, yet familiar voice barks from the doorway.

Jumping ten feet into the air, I whirl around with such a speed that I have to slightly lean against the wall so that I don't fall down from dizziness. My heart pounds wildly in my chest as I watch the figure standing in my room with his wand hanging loosely in one hand. My eyes fly to the closed door for a second before settling back on the dark-haired, grey eyed, and very angry looking wizard glaring at me.

"S-Sirius?" I stammer, finally finding my voice.

I watch as his expression falters for a moment in surprise of my use of his first name. But he regains his composure just as quickly and sneers at me. "Surprised?"

I don't know what makes me do it – probably the fact that Sirius is the only person who knows the entire truth other than me and _him_ or the fact that Sirius is _his _best friend – but I unglue my legs from my spot near the window and run with the speed of light before hugging him with all my strength.

His surprise at my reaction becomes evident when instead of pushing me away, he pats my back awkwardly. "Uh…Evans? You okay?" Sirius asks in an almost worried tone.

I slowly pull away from the shocked boy and before I can help it, the first words tumbling out of my mouth are "How is he, Sirius?"

"How do you _think _he is?" He replies with a sigh. "Prongs locked himself in his room ever since he returned yesterday. Mum was getting sick with worry when he didn't come out for dinner either. So I had to enter his bedroom through the window. I can swear I saw him crying. Prongs _never _cries, Evans. Never. Tell me what you did to him." Sirius' eyes flashes with anger again.

"Cr-crying?" I slide down on the floor, unable to believe my ears. And before I even realize it, a drop of tear slides down my cheek and a loud sob escapes my lips. But when it does, I can't control it anymore. All my suppressed frustration, guilt, fear and anger at myself pour out of me in the form of tears. Shaking uncontrollably, I bury my face in my hands and try to let out all the pain.

"Please tell me what happened, Evans," Sirius says, kneeling down beside me and placing his hand on my shoulder. "The prat won't even talk to me about it. You _need _to tell me if you want me to help you."

"I-I-I was h-ho-horrible to h-him," I manage to say between my sobs. "Oh God, Sirius! He s-said that he l-lo-loved me and I m-made him go a-away. I told him th-that I didn't bloody tru-trust him."

"Why in Merlin's name did you do that?" Sirius asks, his eyes wide. "Do you really not trust him?"

"Of course I do," I shout in frustration. Then angrily wiping away my tears, I look him in the eye and explain, "I was scared, Sirius. I hated him for six years of my life and then he suddenly showed up at my house, pretending to be my boyfriend. What's more, I was actually starting to fall for him! I was scared out of my wits as it was. And then yesterday when he said that he loved me and wanted to be with me, I realized that I couldn't let that happen."

"When I was little, Petunia, my sister, was my best friend. We would play together and fight with each other, but it was never serious. But when I got my acceptance letter to Hogwarts, she started hating me and I lost my sister and my best friend." I pause for a second before continuing, "I never told this to anyone, but Severus Snape was the person who told me I was a witch in the first place. By the time we started Hogwarts, he had become my new best friend, almost like a replacement for Petunia."

I take deep breath, gently wiping the tears that continue streaming down my face. Looking at Sirius, I find him listening to me with a sympathetic expression on his face. He softly squeezes my hand as a gesture of reassurance and asks me to continue.

"But as time passed, he started hanging out with his Slytherin friends and I realized that he changed. And after that incident during fifth year OWLS, I knew that it was time I broke our friendship. It was the second time I lost someone who I had grown too attached to. That was when I decided that I couldn't let anyone get too close to me again. I never even opened up to Mary completely…because it hurts too much to lose them in the end, Sirius! And you _always _lose them in the end" I finish sadly.

I watch as Sirius drops his hand from mine and uses it to tug his hair in frustration. "Okay, so let me get this straight," He starts, "You basically told Prongs to fuck off because you were too scared to let him in. And you didn't want to let him in because you were too scared to lose him?" He asks with an 'are you mentally ill?' expression on his face.

I bite my lip and start fidgeting with my hands before replying, "To put it in simple words…yeah. I guess that's exactly what I did." _Kudos to me for having so much confidence in myself! _

"And here I was, thinking you were too blind to see Prongs' love," Sirius says, breaking the silence. My head snaps up in surprise at his words. But that dissipates quickly when he says his next sentence, "You are blind _and _thick. Merlin Evans! The prick loves you too much to ever break-up with you. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that if you two _do_ have a relationship and then a break-up, _you'll _be the one to do it. He would never break your heart."

"Really?" I ask him, hopefully

"YES!" Sirius replies, rolling his eyes, but grinning all the same. "I would know. You were not the one who had to spend four years listening to him whine about a 'gorgeous redhead stealing his heart'!"

And for the first time in the last 24 hours, the corners of my mouth tug upwards to form a genuine smile. "Thank You, Sirius," I tell him before wrapping my arms around his neck and hugging him again. And this time, Sirius returns the hug - _or rather, the bear-hug. Merlin, this is suffocating! _

"Umm…Sirius? It's getting a bit difficult to breath," I squeak, trying to pull away from him. The git only laughs loudly before squeezing me harder – _OUCH! – _and finally letting me go. But before I even get a chance to reprimand him, Sirius jumps up and stands in front of me, exclaiming, "All this lovey-dovey stuff and advice giving is getting too much. Let's go now, so that you can apologize to Prongsie, shall we?"

"Do you think he'll forgive me? I said all sorts of horrible stuff to him." I ask anxiously, my eyes slightly filling up with tears again.

Sirius sighs solemnly before looking down at me and replying, "Honestly Evans, if this had been any other day, I would've told you that he will forgive you in an instant. But after seeing him heartbroken like that, I'm not so sure anymore."

I groan in frustration and try not to concentrate on my dizziness which seems to be growing with each passing second. _No. I can't eat now. There are more pressing matters to take care of. Like apologizing to __**him**__. _"Oi! Don't give up hope," Sirius says. "I said I'm not sure. But there's always a possibility."

I sigh and nod my head. _He's right…I've at least got to try._

Getting up from the floor, I make my way towards the door. Turning back around, I find Sirius still rooted on the spot. At my questioning gaze, he replies, "Um…can't we just apparate from here?"

_Oh right. Anyway, I don't think Mum would appreciate it if I left with some random guy to go and talk to my 'ex-boyfriend'. _

"Right. Sorry," I apologize. Then walking over to Sirius, I hold out my hand to him, saying, "I don't know where you guys live. So we'll have to do a side-along apparition." When he doesn't take my hand, I look up to see him smirking the infamous 'Sirius Black smirk'. "You _are _very different, Evans," he says with amusement in his voice, confusing me to no end.

When he receives nothing but my blank expression in response, he sighs and explains, "No offence or anything, but you look like a disaster right now. I mean, you _are _going to confess your undying love for my best mate. Any other girl would have been freaking out and squealing by now. Don't you even care about how you look?"

_Holy Mother of Merlin! He's right! _

I quickly rush past him and walk over to the mirror in my room. Barely able to control the scream, I take in my reflection with horror – My hair is a bundle of knots and wires sitting on top of my head, my eyes are bloodshot and tired with huge purple bags to go with it, my nose is all red from the crying and my current outfit is sweatpants and a t-shirt that says 'REBEL'.

_Crap!_

* * *

"Not that one"

"This?"

"No no…I meant the other one!"

"The black one!"

"This _is _the black one"

"The skimpy one"

"SIRIUS!"

Half an hour later, with the courtesy of make-up, I stand with a somewhat decent face – _I was not able to get rid of the purple bags under my eyes – _and knot-free hair, arguing with Sirius Black over what my outfit to please his best-mate should be.

And I would like to admit that I have kicked all my senses out the window because I am taking advice from Sirius Bloody Black! And the prat won't stop suggesting revealing and skimpy outfits. _Who even put these things in my wardrobe? Oh wait a minute…these are the outfits that Petunia outgrew! _

"How about this one? This greenish-bluish one? What's this color called again? Turto…no, no…turquoise! That's it! This turquoise one!" Sirius cries triumphantly.

I turn back around to check exactly _which_ vulgar outfit Mr. Black is talking about. But when I spot the dress that he is holding in his hand, I can't help but grin at his choice. It's the dress Mum gave me on my birthday and I only wore it once before. _How did I not see this?_

It's a very simple and casual, yet elegant dress. With a pretty floral pattern running across its bodice, the dress reaches just above my knees. "Sirius, I Love you," I say happily, taking the dress from his hands and hugging him. As we pull back, Sirius looks at me with a mock shocked expression on his face as he says, "I hope you don't mean that."

I shove him playfully before walking over to the mirror and placing the dress in front of my body to see how it will look like. Then absentmindedly, I say, "No. But I love your best friend." I pause suddenly, my eyes wide.

"You do?" asks Sirius, smirking teasingly.

I slowly turn around to face him, the shocked expression still frozen on my face. "I-I do," I say, realizing that I meant it. And then I start laughing abruptly. And not just a chuckle either. I throw my head back and laugh loudly, despite the dizziness and pain in my head. But all I care about right now is my confession. "I love James Potter, Sirius," I claim euphorically. "I love him!"

"Oh I heard you the first time well and clear," He says with a smug expression. "But isn't there someone _else _who you should be saying that to?"

"Yeah, yeah. You're right." _Damn he's doing that a lot lately. I hate it when a Marauder's right and I am not. Hmph._

I quickly dash out of the room, across the hall and into the bathroom. Discarding my dirty outfit and undergarments, I slip into fresh ones and put on the dress. Once satisfied with my reflection, I walk back into the room to find Sirius fixing his hair.

I would've laughed at this point, if I didn't already know about his weird obsession with his dark locks. _Oh well…I can't deny that they __**do **__look pretty cool. _

"Need any make-up, princess?" I tease lightly.

I watch as Sirius whirls around and gives me a quick once-over before a low-whistle escapes his lips. "Prongs is gonna die when he sees you in that," he says. I blush at his comment and to wipe off the smirk from his face, I tease, "And who are _you _trying to please?"

"That hot neighbor of yours," Sirius replies, taking me by surprise. But I don't even need to ask who he's talking about – _unless it's some 40 year old woman. Which I sincerely hope it's not._

"How do you know Selena?" I ask, suspiciously.

"I thought it would be scary if I just apparated in your room straight away. So I apparated a few blocks back and walked the rest. She tried to seduce me when she saw me coming here." He replies nonchalantly, as if it is an everyday event that girls try to seduce him. And I have to admit, _albeit reluctantly, _that it probably is.

"Yeah, that sounds like her," I sigh, wrinkling my nose in disgust. "She kissed hi-_James _too." I tell him, smiling as I use James' name.

"Okay…I'm not sure why you're smiling at that memory," Sirius says, raising an eyebrow at my sanity.

"Nevermind," I shake my head in response. Opening my wardrobe again, I pull out a pair of simple, black flats before slipping my feet into them.

"Let's go, sha – " I manage to say, before losing my balance and almost falling down from the dizziness. Luckily, Sirius catches me before my face hits the marble floor. _Phew! It took a really long time to do all this make-up. I can't spend another half-an hour on it!_

"Hey! When was the last time you ate something?" Sirius asks after steadily placing me into a standing position again. He glares at me with such a suspicious expression on his face that makes me want to cower under his gaze like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

_Mmm….cookies…_

"Uh…yesterday lunch?" I reply sheepishly.

"What is it with you two?" He exclaims, throwing his hands up in the air. "Nothing. I repeat – _nothing_ is more important than food. You have no right to disrespect it like that." I get shocked to see no hint of joke in his grey eyes as he says this. _Merlin, that boy worships food. He's worse than me._

"I understand what you're trying to say, Sirius," I tell him. And I _do _understand. "But now's not the time to eat. I need to apologize to James. Can we please leave?" I put on my best puppy-dog expression to convince him.

_And it works! Well…somewhat._

"Fine," he relents grudgingly. "But drink some water or something if you don't want to fall down every time you take a step."

"Oh, alright," I agree to his condition before quickly running out of the room and into the kitchen. I find Mum washing the dishes when I enter the room and she beams at me. "Lily! You look wonderful, honey. But what are you all dressed up for?" She asks me.

_Bloody hell! Okay…calm down, Lily. Just make up some excuse. No need to panic._

"I-I'm going to Gloria's party with my friend, Sirius." I reply, trying to appear confident.

"Oh! But I thought you didn't like any of Petunia's friends?" Mum asks me with a confused expression. _Can you blame me? Her friends are dumber than flobberworms._

"Well, I'm trying to get to know them better. Maybe they are different than I thought," I say, praying with all my heart that she would stop firing questions at me. _I need to profess my love to James Potter. Why can't she understand that?_

"I'm glad to hear that, honey," Mum smiles at me. "Now, do you want to eat something before you go? You haven't had a bite since yesterday." She says wistfully.

"No, Mum. I'll just drink some water, thanks." I tell her before taking a glass and pouring water from the jar in it. Hastily gulping down the liquid, I kiss my mum goodbye, telling her that I am gonna apparate – _It feels good to have some truth in what I say - _and rush upstairs to join Sirius again.

"There. I drank an entire glass of water. Happy?" I complain, striding over to him. But despite my outer appearance, I can't help but appreciate his concern for me. It actually made me feel better as I drank the water. And I would like nothing more than to gobble down plates and plates of food.

_On second thoughts, scratch that._ _I would like nothing more than to admit to James Potter that I love him._

Smiling widely at that thought and with a new found determination, I grab Sirius' arm and threaten, "If you delay going for another second, I swear I will kill you, Sirius Orion Black."

"Cool down, Evans. No need to get so testy," Sirius replies, grinning at my enthusiasm before wrapping his arms around me and screwing up his face in concentration.

In that single moment, I smile up at the boy in front of me, fully understanding what James meant when he said that he was lucky to have a friend like Sirius Black. And in that moment, I realize that despite whatever choice James makes, Sirius will not abandon this new relationship with me; this relationship where he became my brother without even meaning to. And I became his sister without even planning to.

Lost in my train of thoughts, I almost forget that I'm about to apparate until I feel myself being squeezed through a tire again, before disappearing with a _pop_. But this time it's much worse.

_Note to self – __**Never **__forget that you are about to apparate. The results are not pleasant._

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **Merlin, this chapter was disgustingly long. But I just couldn't stop writing once I started. I know that some of you may not like it so much because James is M. I. A. But I don't blame you…I love him too. But on the brighter side, I love Sirius as well. And anyway, this chapter was important for obvious reasons. I hope I didn't disappoint you guys. Please leave some reviews for me. I'll really appreciate it guys. I promise to update as soon as I can. Love you all. Take care.

Claudia.


	24. The Apology

**Summer Surprise**

**The Apology**

* * *

"Oi, Evans?"

…

"Hey, are you stuck?"

…

"Evans?"

…

"EVANS!" Sirius suddenly shouts in my ear, successfully tearing my ear drums in the process.

"OW! What in Merlin's name was that for?" I frown at the dark-haired boy next to me, finally tearing my eyes away from the…the…_mansion? _in front of me.

"_That_," replies Sirius, rolling his eyes at me "was necessary for bringing you back to earth. I called you a thousand times! But you were too busy gaping at the house."

"Firstly, that is not a house. Mansion or castle, maybe_. _But _not _a house," I say, gesturing towards the gigantic building beyond the iron gates "And secondly, why the hell are we standing here talking instead of going inside?"

Sirius shakes his head in an exaggerated manner, as if dealing with a small child, before muttering something about 'cranky red-heads' and walking towards the mansion, pulling me with him.

I sigh heavily and look up at the sky to find dark and gloomy clouds staring back at me, even in the darkness, in an ominous manner – _Ugh. I hate the unpredictable weather. _Not realizing exactly where my feet are carrying me, I suddenly bump into Sirius and stagger back a little, the lack of food now making me weak as well as dizzy. _Just Peachy!_

"What're you doing? Why are you staring at the sky?" He asks, continuing to walk once again.

"Nothing," I reply. As Sirius looks at me with raised eyebrows, I sigh and relent, "It's just that…I can't help but feelthat it's not going to be easy, Sirius. What am I supposed to do if he doesn't forgive me? And the bloody weather is not helping the situation!" I finish grumpily.

Truthfully, despite my decision of apologizing to James, I am shit scared about what's gonna happen. What exactly will I say to him? _Um…James?...you know that time when I told you that I didn't trust you?…yeah, that time when you told me you loved me, too…well, I just popped by to tell you that I have finally come to my senses and want you to not be pissed at me. Um…so are you pissed at me?_

Yeah, _that'll _be a total success (insert snort here).

"Well DUH it's not going to be easy, Evans!" Sirius replies, bringing me out of my train of thoughts. "But we won't know if Prongs will forgive you or not until we actually go, now would we?"

I apprehensively nod my head, deciding not to bring up the fact that I noticed he didn't tell me anything that actually encouraged me. My stomach drops as I realize that Sirius always tries to be anything _but _serious. And if _he _isn't trying to contradict me or lighten the mood, then…

_Oh Merlin, how bad is it?_

Trying my best to not think about the worst possibilities, I follow Sirius up to the iron gates and watch with curiosity as he taps his wand on specific areas and mutters spells that I've never even heard of under his breath. At my questioning gaze, he shrugs and says, "Aurors. They have to be careful."

I nod my head in understanding and watch as the gates open, allowing us entrance. "C'mon," Sirius says, beckoning me to follow him upthe gravel path that leads to the Potters' mansion. But instead of heading towards the entrance, as I had expected, Sirius takes my hand and pulls me around the huge building, towards the lawn on the other side.

"Sirius, where are you taking me?" I ask with a confused expression.

As we reach the massive green lawn adorned with numerous flowerbeds on the side, Sirius stops and faces me before replying, "Listen, Evans. I'm sorry but you can't come in. I don't want to be the pessimist here, but if Prongs loses his temper or something, then Mum will hear him and try to play the peacekeeper. And I don't think Prongs would really appreciate that. And even if we use the _muffliato_charm, there is a risk that Mum will see you and think you're Prongs' girlfriend and – "

"Sirius," I cut off his rambling and raise my hand to stop him. "It's okay. I understand. But how am I going to talk to James then?"

"I've figured it all out," Sirius explains. "You can wait out here and I'll go talk to Prongs. Then when he comes down here, you can do your apologizing thing, okay?"

I nod my head in response before gulping and saying, "Please…um…please don't tell him that I…you know…love him," As I watch Sirius raise his eyebrows at me, I hastily continue, "I want to explain everything to him myself. Just tell him I really need to talk to him, okay?"

Sirius smirks at me for a moment before raising his hand and patting my shoulder. "Good luck," he says with a smile.

"Thanks…I'll need it." I say gratefully and watch Sirius walk towards the entrance and disappear from my view.

I sigh and close my eyes before allowing myself to plop down on the soft grass. As I sit there, pondering over what I will say to James, I suddenly feel so dizzy that blackness spreads over my eyes for a second. "Whoa!" I exclaim, blinking my eyes rapidly to get rid of the uneasiness. At that moment, my stomach complains angrily and growls, demanding food.

I groan and put my head in my hands, hoping that Sirius would hurry up and get James.

"Lily?" a voice calls, startling me. My heart drops to my stomach as I recognize the voice and the feeling of sympathy in it.

"Why didn't he come?" I ask softly, after a few moments, without even turning around.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watch Sirius settle himself beside me on the grass before reaching out and squeezing my hand in a friendly gesture. "How did you know that he wasn't here?" he asks.

"You called me Lily. You _never _call me Lily," I turn to him with a supposed 'smile' on my face, trying to stop the welling tears in my eyes from spilling on my cheeks. But a small sob escapes my lips when he sees through my act and pulls me in for a hug. "I'm sorry," he apologizes.

I shake my head and pull away from Sirius before angrily wiping away the tears and forcing myself to not cry anymore. "Why didn't he come, Sirius?" I repeat again. "Is he so angry with me that he doesn't even want to see me?" I dare to ask, my voice wavering.

My heart breaks into a thousand pieces as Sirius responds with silence. "He doesn't even want to see my face," I whisper, shocked.

All this time that I had spent thinking how I would go about apologizing to James, not _one _of those scenarios even considered the fact that maybe he wouldn't even want to meet me. And why would I? After having him chase after me for four years of my life, I didn't even bother to think that he would refuse to see me after I came to apologize to him all the way to his house.

For the first time in my life, I realize what an unappreciative person I really am.

"Tell me _exactly _what he told you, Sirius." I say, breaking the gloomy silence. "Atleast then I'll know where I stand." I scoff, disgusted at myself.

"Evans, I don't really think you – "

"No I do," I say cutting him off in mid-sentence. "I need to know what he said. Just tell me." Despite my outer show of determination, my heart screams in apprehension as I watch Sirius' pained expression looking back at me with pitiful eyes. "Please," I whisper.

"Don't know why you're doing this to yourself," Sirius mutters before turning around and staring determinedly ahead, refusing to look me in the eye. "He said that he could care less about what you want anymore and that he would appreciate it if you left him alone from now on. He…he doesn't want to see you again. And the only time he _will_ see you is when he will be forced to work with you as head boy." He says really fast, hoping to reduce my pain from those words. From _his _words.

I don't even realize that my face is streaming with tears until Sirius turns back around and looks at me before shaking his head dejectedly. "I _told _you that you shouldn't hear this. But I know for a fact that he is lying, Evans. Do you honestly think that he meant all that? That prick couldn't hate you if his life depended on it. He's been smitten with you for – Evans? Oi, are you listening?"

I sit up straight, my heart thumping rapidly in my chest and the tears drying up against my cheek as the cool air whips across my face. I barely blink as I see Sirius' hand waving in front of my face and his voice calling out my name. There is only one thing I know as I sit there on the grass, my back facing the building behind me, and consequently the first floor windows as well –

He is watching me.

I don't know how or why, I _just know _he is watching me.

Thanks to my knowledge of James' fast reflexes, I stand up so rapidly that Sirius falls down on the lawn from shock and I whirl around with such a speed that I stumble forward a step from dizziness. But I promptly push all of that to the back of my mind as my eyes fall on the window on the first floor; I was right.

I never knew that such a time would come in which seeing James Potter's face would make my day rather than ruin it. But as I've noticed, things have had a knack of changing a lot this summer. So honestly, it didn't really surprise me when my heart leaped to my throat and my stomach started doing summersaults at the sight of the messy-haired boy.

As our eyes lock on each other, I release a breath that I didn't even know I was holding. Finally finding my voice – _which had conveniently gone on a vacation – _I whisper his name, knowing that despite the distance, he can clearly hear me.

For a fleeting second, I find his carefully masked and blank expression crumble to be replaced by such powerful emotions on his handsome face that it takes my breath away. But at the next moment, there is such a cold and angry expression there that I can't help but wonder if I had imagined the entire thing.

_Oh crap._

"James, please listen to me. I – "

SLAM!

I feel a fresh wave of hot tears streaking down my cold skin as I stare at the now shut window. Standing at the lawn with my head pounding miserably, I suddenly have an urge to apparate into James' room and just get it all over with. But as soon as it comes, I shut that thought away as I realize that a) the Potters probably have an anti-apparition spell on their house and b) I don't think forcing myself on James would make either him or me feel too good about it.

"That prat! I knew he wouldn't be able to stay away. Wait here, Evans. I'll go see if I can go convince him again," Sirius' voice faintly reaches my ears.

As I watch his retreating figure walk towards the entrance again, the clouds rumble loudly before it suddenly starts to rain with full-force. I stand for a few more minutes on the grass, waiting for the cold water to wash away my tears. But that plan fails spectacularly as new ones immediately replace them. Then slowly, I unglue myself from the spot and turn around before walking towards the gates again.

Soaking to the bone with cold rainwater, I reach for the iron gates, hoping that it won't require a spell to exit too. It doesn't. With a pounding head, drenching clothes and a broken heart, I start walking…somewhere…anywhere.

_Waiting for Sirius would have been fruitless anyway, _I decide. _Staying there and hoping that James would come out would've only shattered my heart all over again. Because after slamming the window in my face, I don't think James would be too keen to listen to Sirius now._

Then suddenly, the next thing I know is that my voice and legs are hurting too. And that is when I realize that I'm running…and yelling. I don't even remember how long I've been running for or how far way I've come. Hell, I don't even have a clue about where I am.

All I know is that I need to get some of this pain out of my system.

So against the screams and protests of my body organs, I keep running and yelling till my voice refuses to work anymore and my legs give-out. I drop down on my knees and cry myself hoarse, my body shaking with each sob that tears from my lips. Looking down at myself, I notice my once beautiful turquoise dress to be soaked with water and my black flats to be smeared with mud. My sobs become louder as I remember the reason for my dressing up like this. That reason who even refused to glance in my direction!

"Look what we have here…" A voice sneers, startling me and making me look up.

I quickly scramble away and stand up as I see a group of three boys – _probably muggle – _standing in front of me with their arms folded across their chest. My hand instinctively moves to pull down the hem of my dress as their eyes start roving up and down my body. _Disgusting_.

My eyes quickly dart around as I try and take in my surroundings. I have to bite back a groan as I realize that I was sitting and crying my eyes out in a dingy alleyway at Merlin-knows-what time of the night. Hoping to get out of this mess as fast as I can, I try to push past the three boys in front of me.

But when has fate ever been in my favor?

One of the disgusting perverts grabs my arm as I try to move past him and pulls me back. "And where do you think you're going?" he asks, leaning closer to me with each word. I clench my teeth and try to pry his fingers off my arm to no avail. "Let…go…of…me." I struggle against his death-grip.

"And what good would that do us?" the third one asks, walking over to me and running his fingers down my arm. Unable to keep my anger in check anymore, I whack his hand away before reaching into my back pocket to retrieve my wand. _I'll obliviate their memories if I have to._

Only…I am wearing a dress. Which means there _is _no back pocket. Which means there is no wand either. Which means I'm officially doomed. _Holy crap!_

And for the first time since their entrance, I realize exactly how vulnerable I am without my wand. Without my wand, these muggle boys are almost as bad as the death eaters. If I ever manage to get out of here, I need to remember to always carry my wand…even if I'm going to apologize to someone. _Either that, or I need to buy dresses that have pockets in them. _

Forcing myself to not panic, I bring my hand forward again…only to raise it and slap the boy holding my arm across the face. I mentally pat myself on the back as I watch the red imprint of my hand on his cheek as he looks back up again. Suddenly, I feel myself being whirled around by a pair of rough hands before they pin me up against the dirty walls of the wretched alley.

"Feisty little thing, aren't you?" The monster says, his putrid breath and voice increasing my headache.

But before I even have time to say anything, a gasp escapes my lips as one of his hands travel down my waist and he grasps my thigh. "You bloody arsehole!" I shriek before promptly raising my fist and punching him in the jaw.

Despite the fact that he was at least twice my size and I only managed to get his hands off of me when he staggered back, the ass-in-the-body-of-a-human turns sharply in my direction once he regains his composure and furiously glares at me before raising his hand and hitting me across the face.

Due to my already weak body, dizzy mind and – _as much as I want to deny it – _the strong force of his hit, I go skidding down on the floor. Groaning in pain, I try to lift my head, only to have it fall back on the wet ground as my vision starts going black again. But this time it becomes much harder to open my eyes again.

CRACK – The sound reaches my ears, cutting through the noise of rain water splashing on mud.

With great difficulty, I manage to open my eyes again and slowly lift my head up to find the source of the sound. Even in my half-conscious state, my heart soars as I watch James standing in front of me with his hand fisted on his side and drops of blood dripping from it along with the rain. "J-James," I whisper weakly, barely managing to keep myself awake as pain, exhaustion and hunger start taking their toll on my body.

I watch as he turns his eyes in my direction and his expression of loathing softens to that of regret and hurt. Suddenly, I see his gaze move towards my lips and his eyes flash dangerously. Utterly confused at his reaction, I raise my hand to my mouth and bring it back to find blood on my palm. And that is when I realize that the monster had hit me so hard that I was bleeding.

My head snaps up as another sickening _CRACK _enters my ears. My eyes widen in shock as I find James' fist covered in more blood. Finally, I avert my eyes from him to focus on the other figures around me. I watch with satisfaction as I find two of the boys standing in the corner with horror-struck expressions on their faces. Wanting to revel in the reason for their discomfort, I follow their line of vision to rest on their third companion.

But instead of actually reveling in what I find, the situation slightly scares me –

With a broken nose and jaw, along with a black eye, I find him sprawled out on the ground in a similar position like me. The only difference is that his situation is much, much worse. As realization dawns on me that the blood dripping from James' fist was not his, but this pathetic-excuse-for-a-human's, I actually start pitying the guy.

And as much as I would like for him to be roasted on a spit and be burned in hell, I realize that if I don't stop James, this guy is in serious danger of losing his limbs. So as I watch James pull up his staggering body from the ground and raise his fist again, I speak up, "James, stop. He's not worth it."

Without even glancing in my direction, James pulls his hand back very reluctantly and I notice that his fist shakes and his jaw clenches with barely suppressed anger. Giving him one last jerk, James throws the boy on the ground using his shirt collar and steps back.

"Just take him and get the fuck out of here," he barks to the other two boys when the third one groans and tries to stand up again.

If it weren't for my almost unconscious state and dire circumstances, I would've definitely rolled my eyes; I watch the two of them pass James with incredible amount of caution and stealth, afraid that he would lose his mind and start beating them to a pulp too. Then in the same manner, they lower themselves next to their leader's body and help him stand up before the three of them all but run out of the alleyway.

_So much for courage and manliness; they didn't even move from their spots when James was beating the crap out of their companion. _

Swaying uncontrollably, I use the rough wall as a support to drag my feet into a standing position. Noticing James still glued to his previous spot, I slowly take a step forward, my black flats making squelching sounds on the wet mud. "Jam – "

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING?" He suddenly shouts, whirling around and making me jump ten feet in the air during the process.

"I didn't – " I start to say weakly before he cuts me off again –

"That's right. You didn't think anything at all, did you?" James balls up his fists and takes a step towards me. With his face so close to mine, I notice the anger, hurt and frustration trying to take control over his hazel orbs.

"James, please, I – "

"Running away in the _fucking_ rain, for Merlin's sake," he talks over me. Again_. _"Do you have any _idea _how far you've come?" – _I can wager a guess. Those were muggles after all – _"If I hadn't reached here on time, God knows what would've happened!" I shudder at the thought.

Then suddenly, almost unknowingly, James' expression softens slightly and he raises his hand to the corner of my mouth before using his thumb to cautiously wipe away the blood. My eyes flutter close against his warm, gentle touch and I unknowingly lean into his hand. Then, as if remembering that he's supposed to be angry at me, he moves his hand away and steps back. I internally sigh at the loss.

Fighting against myself to stay conscious as the dizziness starts becoming unbearable, I try to talk to him again. "Please hear me out, Ja – "

"Don't you _ever _carry your wand with you?" he shouts again, testing my patience. _There is only so much I can take. If he cuts me off one more time…_

"I'm wearing a dress…I didn't think I would need a wand when I came to apolo –"

"Oh _puh-lease_, Evans. Save it for someone who actually gives a damn," James scoffs, his words bringing tears to my eyes again without my knowledge. "Why would you need to apologize to me, anyway? I am an egotistical prat and an arrogant toe-rag, remember? Is that what you came to remind me? If that's the case, then let me assure you, Lily Evans, that I'm not going to forget it anytime soon. I definitely don't need more reminders that I'm not worth your – "

"SHUT _UP, _JAMES!" I scream at the top of my lungs, effectively silencing him. Immediately, I regret the action as my head starts throbbing with an almighty vigor and makes me sway on the spot for a few seconds. James stares at me with a confused expression.

"Will you just _listen _to me," I say in a softer tone, trying to control my wavering voice as the tears continue to streak down my face along with the rain. "I really _did _come to apologize. I realize now that you were right, James. But I was too scared to listen to you. I just couldn't take the risk of being with you. I was _terrified _at the thought of losing you, okay? I know it sounds completely crazy but the only reason I refused to be with you was because I knew I wouldn't be able to handle the loss of another relationship. After Tuney and Snape, I don't think I have it in me anymore, James. I was scared of getting my heart broken again. Still am."

Seeing James open his mouth to question me, I hastily continue, "But I realize that I was wrong. I know that you would never hurt me. I _do _trust you. And I also admit that you were right when you said that I was in denial. But what can I say? I'm pathetic," I give him a watery smile as I notice the corner of James' mouth quirk upwards.

"Please, James," I whisper, stepping closer to him and taking his warm hands in my freezing cold ones. "Please forgive me. All those things I said" – I gulp, still disgusted with myself – "I didn't mean any of that. I lied to you. I'm so, _so _sorry. Please." I sniff, unknowingly leaning my weak body against his strong one for support.

"Why should I believe in anything you say?" He asks me in a guarded voice. But I can almost make out his desperate plea for me to give him a good reason so that he can trust my words.

Looking up at James, I take in his dripping wet hair – _which still looks messy and pathetically sexy – _and sparkling hazel eyes which seem to pierce into my green ones. My eyes follow the water droplets as they trickle past his eyes, down his nose and trail his lips in a teasing manner before disappearing down his neck and into his t-shirt. With those drops of rain streaming down his glasses, his shirt clinging to his body and his sneakers dirty with mud, James Potter has never looked more handsome.

"Because I love you," I reply in a barely audible whisper.

But I know he clearly hears me when his eyes widen to the size of saucers and his heart rate triples against me. Waiting with bated breath for him to say something, I become impatient as moments turn to minutes and James doesn't make a move. Then realizing that it's about time that _I _made the first move, I stand on my tip-toes and capture his lips with mine.

As expected, James doesn't move for the first few seconds, but when he does, my head starts reeling from the intensity of it. "I love you too," he murmurs against my lips, making me grin widely in response. As James swipes his tongue against my bottom lip, I eagerly open my mouth and allow him entrance. Tightening my arms around his neck, I tangle my fingers into his messy and wet locks to keep myself steady and not lose my consciousness.

"I really am sorry," I apologize as James tears his lips away from mine and starts trailing kisses on my collarbone.

"I know," he breathes before nibbling at my earlobe playfully. "And I forgive you."

I almost feel him smirk against my skin as he sucks at the pulse on my neck, eliciting a soft moan from me. I sigh in contentment as his lips return to mine and he pulls me impossibly close to himself, our wet outfits clinging against each other. While I revel in the feeling of our chests heaving together and suck on James' bottom lip, making him wrap his arm more tightly around my waist, I suddenly feel my head spinning out of control.

Unable to maintain my balance, I stagger backwards, ending our 'out-of-the-world' kiss. As the alleyway starts spinning around me and I start seeing blackness cover my vision, my knees buckle and I fall towards the ground.

"Lily!?" I hear James shout before catching me in his arms. Through my extremely cloudy vision, I somehow manage to make out his worried hazel eyes staring at me. "Lily, what's wrong? Are you alright?" he asks with panic evident in his voice. I shake my head in response, wincing as it only deteriorates my condition.

"Dizzy…head…hungry…food," I mumble incoherently as the blackness covers my vision completely.

"Shit! Lily!" James' voice faintly reaches my ears before I lose all my senses and blackout.

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **There you go guys…I got them together. Please give me a moment as my crazy fan-girl side takes over and I giggle girlishly. 1, 2, 3…and done! Thanks. Anyway, I would like to apologize that I haven't updated for so long even though I said I would do it really soon. I swear I tried to, but my English teacher assigned this stupid reading assignment and I had to spend all my time finishing the blasted book. Ah! Whatever! I finally got James and Lily together…I'm happy. Tell me what you think of this chapter guys. And I love you all for the reviews, follows and favorites. Keep them coming.

Claudia.


	25. Breakfast in Bed

**Summer Surprise**

**Breakfast in Bed**

* * *

I sigh softly and shift to snuggle deeper into the cozy doona cocooned around me. Keeping my eyes tightly shut, I revel in the feeling of the gentle hand stroking my hair and the strong arm wrapped around my shoulders. With a contended smile on my face, I move closer to the warm body next to me. _Hmmm…If only every day could be like this one, then I would – _

Wait a minute…

_Cozy doona? Gentle hand? Strong arm? Warm BODY?_

"AAAHHH!" I scream, thrashing around wildly in an attempt to put as much distance as possible between the psycho rapist in my bed and me. _Oh Merlin, had I been drugged? _"Get your hands off of me," I shout hysterically before using all my force to shove the figure away from me.

THUD. The potential rapist falls down from the bed.

CLANK. Something drops and I hear a weak groan before all sounds stop. _I think he passed out. Wow! That's probably the weakest rapist I've ever seen._

As I hyperventilate due to panic, my hand clumsily reaches out for the wand on my bedside table. Blaming my still pounding headache and unclear, hazy vision for my lack of coordination, I blink my eyes a few times so that I can search for my wand properly. But my throat becomes dry and my heart tries to break out of my rib-cage as I take a look at my room –

The only problem is that _this is_ _not _my room…

The walls are ivory colored instead of green, there is no bedside table on my left, but a door – _probably an attached bathroom –_ instead, and the bed I am currently sitting on is probably twice the size of my own. But the most _mortifying_ fact is that there is a small couch in the corner of the room with _my _turquoise dress draped on it.

Instantly, my eyes fly down to my own body and my shoulders slump in relief as I realize that I am not naked. _Good…that's really good. _

_But why am I wearing a guy's shirt? _I wonder with a frown as I notice the oversized gray t-shirt on me that reaches mid-thigh. Suddenly, my eyes widen as realization dawns on me and I drop my head into my hands, unable to believe my luck –

_Why did the bloody rapist drug me and bring me to __**his **__house? Why, oh why, oh why? What did I ever – WAIT…is that…sandalwood and pine? _

Suddenly, I hear a loud and painful groan from the other side of the bed where I threw the assailant on the floor. "What the hell is _wrong _with you, woman?" a familiar voice complains, hearing which I release a humungous sigh of relief.

As soon as his voice enters my ears, all the events from last night come flooding back to me and I smile involuntarily. But my next reaction is to slap my hand to my forehead – _and cringe from dizziness – _as I reprimand myself for not thinking of that first. _Of course he would've brought me to his house!_

"James?" I crawl over to the other end of the king-sized bed before looking down at the messy-haired wizard with a grin. "It's you?" I ask stupidly.

"Well, obviously," he grumbles, rubbing the back of his head cautiously and wincing. "Why did you attack me? I passed out."

"I thought you were some psycho guy who drugged and brought me here," I reply with a sheepish look. "And as for you passing out, you're just too weak." I tease him.

"_Weak?_" he splutters indignantly, "Get your eyes checked, Miss Evans. You dropped the bloody alarm clock on my head with all your arm flailing. And just in case you have never had an alarm clock drop on your head, let me tell you that it bloody hurts!"

Looking down on the floor, I notice that there is indeed an innocent looking alarm clock lying beside James. "I'm sorry," I apologize. "But I told you that I thought you were a rapist. My actions were instinctual."

"Lily, do I look like a rapist to you?" James asks, looking appalled at the idea.

"No, silly," I laugh, offering a hand for him to take. "I couldn't even see you properly. I was too busy concentrating on the fact that there was someone sleeping next to me and I didn't have the slightest clue as to where I was or how I ended up here. Oh _and _my head hurts like there's no tomorrow so my brain is taking quite some time to process information."

"Yeah, about that…" James frowns while sitting down beside me on the bed. "Why the hell would you starve yourself? That was a _really _stupid thing to do." He shakes his head at me before taking out his wand and conjuring up an empty glass. Pointing his wand at it, he says, "Aguamenti" and I watch as it fills up with water.

Once James hands me the glass and I eagerly gulp it down to ease my headache, I offer him a sheepish smile and apologize, "I'm sorry. I didn't feel like eating. I was upse – " I stop abruptly and my eyes widen as I suddenly remember something. Frowning, I decide to glare at James with my arms folded across my chest.

At his completely nonplussed expression, I lift an eyebrow and explain, "Game's up, James. I know you didn't eat anything either. Sirius told me, you hypocrite!" I jab my forefinger in his chest accusingly.

With a triumphant smirk, I watch as James sulks for a minute before grumbling something under his breath which sounds a lot like 'bloody mutt'. Just as I start worrying about his sanity, my head gives an almighty throb and I almost pass out again. Clutching the smooth bed sheets in my fists, I try to keep myself steady.

James must've noticed my movements because he grabs both my arms in his hands and stares into my eyes with a worried expression. "Lily, are you alright?" I blink. With him so close to me, my heart starts fluttering madly against my chest and I can almost count the specks of green in his hazel orbs. "I'm hungry," I whisper, my eyes unconsciously straying to his soft lips.

I lick my own lips and close my eyes before swallowing and forcing myself to look up into his face again. My eyes narrow and I mockingly glare at him as I find James trying his best to not smirk. I clear my throat loudly.

"Oh…right. Here, have some more water," he casts the _Aguamenti _spell again and the glass in my hand fills up once more. "Wait here. I'll go get some food from the kitchen." He says before getting up from the bed and striding towards the door.

"James?" I call, making him turn around and raise his eyebrows questioningly.

"Thanks for the shirt," I smile at him.

He blushes slightly before shrugging and replying, "Your dress was drenching with water. So I thought...you know..." He trails off awkwardly.

"Hey, do you hear me complaining? I just said thanks." I smirk, taking enjoyment in the fact that James Potter is blushing because of me. Hearing my words, he grins brightly before turning around and exiting the room. I sigh happily and take a sip of water from the glass before throwing off the covers and getting up from the bed.

Allowing my feet and muscles to stretch for a bit, I start examining James' room. Even without my eyes still groggy from sleep, I don't blame myself for not thinking that this could be James Potter's room. I had always imagined that his walls would be covered with so many Quidditch posters that it would be impossible to find the real color of said wall. But this room seems so…normal. Sighing, I walk over to the window in the room and find myself looking down at the lawn where I was standing just last night. I quickly avert my eyes as the painful memory hits me and take another sip of water to clear my mind.

Noticing a small bedside table on the right side of the bed, I walk over to it and smile as I find a framed picture of the Marauders, posing in front of the Black lake. I roll my eyes, grinning nevertheless, as the sixteen year old Sirius black winks and sends me a flirtatious smile. As Remus waves enthusiastically and Peter smiles shyly, James runs a hand through his messy hair before blowing me a kiss.

"Look at me. I'm gorgeous!"

_Good God! _I almost jump out of my skin as the voice behind me startles me to death. Putting a hand to my thumping heart to calm it down, I narrow my eyes and whirl around while saying, "Why do you have to sneak into the room every time I see you, Sirius?"

"And good morning to you too, Evans," Sirius replies cheekily before giving me the once-over. "Nice legs, love. Is that Prongsie's t-shirt?" he asks wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. I instantly feel a blush creep onto my face and stare determinedly at the floor.

"Git," I mutter as Sirius starts laughing his head off. Suddenly, I feel the corners of my mouth tug upwards as well and soon, I join Sirius in on the laughter.

Once we regain our composures, I down the rest of the water in the glass as my head starts hurting again. "Still not eaten anything?" Sirius asks me to which I respond by slowly shaking my head. He sighs and drapes an arm around my shoulders before lazily flicking his wand while muttering "Aguamenti"

_At this rate, I'll be visiting the bathroom soon…_

"You know, I'd feel sorry for your headache, but you ditched me and left when I told you to wait," he jokes, bringing my mind out of thoughts about full bladders. I scoff and shove him away playfully. "Well it worked, didn't it? James came looking for me." I haughtily flick my hair over my shoulder.

"Oh you didn't see the worst," he says with a smirk. At my eager look, he continues. "When I told Prongs that you ran off in the rain, he practically tried to jump out the window to go after you. If it weren't for me, he would've been dead by now."

After the next round of laughter dies down – during which I almost dropped my glass; I was laughing so hard – I smile gratefully at the dark-haired boy and say, "Thanks a lot, Sirius. If you hadn't come, I would've never realized how stupid I was being." As he shrugs with a smile on his face, I wrap my arms around him and give him a friendly hug.

"Hey, I only did that because Mum was getting sick with worry and Prongs was sulking all the time. I was getting bored," he says, returning the hug.

I roll my eyes and reply, "Whatever, Sirius. You're a good friend. I know you love James and did this for him."

He doesn't reply. But I feel him hug me tighter and pat my back gently. A smile creeps onto my features and now, more than ever, I realize how jealous I had always been of the bond the two brothers share. But somehow, within two days, Sirius Black managed to kill that feeling of jealousy a bit.

_Oh Merlin! Sirius Black…an actually decent guy! Wait till Mary hears about all of this when we return to school…_

"What the – " a voice comes from the doorway, hearing which I pull away from Sirius. For some reason, the scene of James Potter standing with a tray of food in his hands and a surprised expression on his face causes me to snort in amusement. _And apparently Sirius shares my amusement_, I decide, watching him snort too. I'd like to think that I sound more graceful than him…

"Breakfast in bed? Honestly, Prongs? She's already got you whipped, mate." Sirius says wiping tears from the corner of his eyes.

"Has not!" James exclaims indignantly, earning another round of chuckling from Sirius and me. He simply rolls his eyes and sets down the tray on the coffee table in front of the couch before turning around to face us again. "Now tell me what the hell was going on before I came in," he demands, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Sorry Prongs. But we can't hide it anymore! I love Lily-flower and she loves me. I didn't want to break your heart, mate. But I guess this is what fate has decided." I hear Sirius say overdramatically and I roll my eyes as I walk over to the table and pile up a plate with pancakes, bacons, eggs and toast.

As soon as I take the first bite of food after Merlin-knows-how-long, my eyes flutter shut and I start savoring the feeling. "Mmmm," I moan before shoveling the pancakes down my throat, all manners forgotten. _Ah…heaven!_

Looking up, I find James and Sirius still continuing their bickering. I shake my head in amusement at their immaturity. "James!" I call, trying to get his attention. Once he looks at me, I beckon him towards me and say, "Come here and eat something. Or you will pass out too."

"What about me?" Sirius whines, pouting and putting on his puppy-dog eyes look. _For some weird reason, the look suits him. No wonder he manages to get away from the professors. _

I scoot over and make space on the couch for the boys to sit. Once they settle themselves – _after arguing for five more minutes on who I wanted to sit beside me – _on either side of me, I continue my breakfast peacefully. "The food was really amazing," I say after downing my glass of strawberry milkshake.

"Id veely ish." Sirius says from my right. Glancing in his direction, my nose wrinkles in disgust when I find him stuffing his face with everything his hands can reach. "I think he means, 'it really is'," James supplies, long used to such behavior from his best mate. I nod my head and avert my eyes from the disturbing scene.

"So, I take it that you like Mum's cooking," James says once he finishes his breakfast and puts his plate down. As soon as the words are out of his mouth, my head snaps in his direction and my eyes widen before I leap up from the couch. "Your Mum knows I'm here?" I almost yell, eyeing the two wizards with shock.

_Holy Smokes! _

I watch as Sirius stops eating and not-so-discreetly says to James, "good luck with this one, mate" before standing up, throwing a wink in my direction and leaving the room with a smirk on his face. Once his strutting figure disappears from my view, I direct my attention back to James and glare at him. "Why didn't you tell me about that, James Potter?"

"What's there to tell, Lily?" he asks feebly.

"What do you mean 'what's there to tell'?" I snort disbelievingly. "James, she's your Mum! I think I'd like to know if she's making breakfast for me and giving me a place to stay when I've never even met her!" I frown for a moment before a hurt expression takes over my eyes. "Why didn't she come to meet me, James?" I ask slowly.

Realizing what I was trying to ask, James reaches out and grabs my arm before pulling me down on the couch again. "Lils, it's not like that," he says, tucking a strand of my auburn hair behind my ear. "She didn't come because I asked her not to." _What the hell? _I swat his hand away from my face and open my mouth to question his weird actions.

"I didn't want you to get all flustered and nervous when you were already dizzy from hunger," he explains, rolling his eyes and wrapping an arm around my waist. "Not to mention you're wearing my shirt. I'm sure you wouldn't fancy being caught like that in front of Mum, would you?" he laughs and taps my nose with his forefinger as I blush at his words.

"Hmm…you're right." I smile.

"As always," he says cockily, but the sparkle in his eyes lets me know that he's only joking. "I love you," I whisper, unknowingly leaning closer to him.

"I love you, too." He replies, before cupping my face in his warm hands and kissing me soundly on the lips. Tangling my fingers in his messy hair, I sigh contentedly into his mouth before the lack of oxygen forces us to break apart. As James rests his forehead against mine, a small smile stretched across his swollen lips and his eyes closed in a peaceful manner, I put my hands on his chest before giving him another peck on the lips and getting up from the couch.

"Where are you going?" he pouts when I pick up my now dry turquoise dress from the arm of the sofa. Seeing his adorable expression, I almost feel like jumping back into his arms and snogging him within an inch of his life. _HAULT! Merlin, Lily! You can't be __**that **__obsessed with him already!_

…_Yeah, right. I'm pathetically obsessed with him._

Shaking my head – _which doesn't hurt anymore! Woohoo! – _I get rid of silly love-struck thoughts and reply, "I'm going to change so that I can go downstairs and properly thank your Mum."

"Lily," James whines, "Don't go."

"James," I mimic him, earning a mock-glare. "I have to. And you're coming with me."

"To the bathroom?" James asks with a hopeful expression, his hazel eyes sparkling mischievously. _Figures!_

"Yeah."

"Really?"

"No. To see your Mum."

"Shame," he sighs overdramatically, making me roll my eyes at him.

"Hey, do you by chance have an extra toothbrush?" I ask James.

"Yeah. There's one in the cabinet above the basin. You can use that."

"Thanks."

Turning around, I enter the attached bathroom and take a moment to appreciate the intricate carvings on the marble. _It's almost as good as the prefect's bathroom!_ Shedding James' shirt, I slip into my dress once more and try to ignore the disappointment of not being able to smell the intoxicating scent any longer. After washing my face thoroughly and brushing my teeth using the spare toothbrush, I try and get rid of the knots in my hair as best as possible before walking out of the bathroom.

"Let's go and thank your – JAMES!" I suddenly shriek, remembering something _very _important. Ignoring his startled expression, I hastily continue, "My Mum! I lied to her and said that I went to some stupid party last night. Petunia must've blown my cover by now and she must be worried sick. Oh Merlin, I'm a horrible daughter! I need to go now. I'm so sorry. But can you tell your Mum that I'll be back soon? I'll go and tell Mum everything and then come back. I know I'm being so ungrateful and – "

"Whoa! Calm down, Lils!" James says, grasping my hands in his own and looking into my eyes which instantly reduces my panic. "I'll go with you. I'm sure I'll be able to help. And don't worry about Mum. I'll ask Padfoot to tell her. She'll understand." He smiles at me. I nod my head and wait patiently as James takes out the two-way mirror from his pocket and calls Sirius.

"Wassup, Prongs?" Sirius asks from the mirror.

"Come to my room. We need to talk to you," James replies.

_Pop. _"What happened?" Sirius asks, noticing my worried expression.

"I'm going with Lily to her house to talk to her Mum. Can you tell Mum that we'll be back soon? We need to leave right now, mate." James answers. Sirius shrugs and says, "Sure. But you're coming back right?"

"Of course. I need to thank Mrs. Potter for everything. We're _definitely _coming back." I tell Sirius to which he nods his head in response. "Cool. I'll go tell her. Bye," Sirius says before disappearing with another _pop. _

"Let's go then, shall we?" James asks after Sirius' departure.

"Yes," I reply before concentrating on apparating to my room. After a few more moments of focusing, I feel myself being compressed and painfully squeezed through a tire, signaling my success. As my feet hit the solid ground, I open my eyes and find myself standing beside my bedside table where my wand lies innocently.

After picking up the piece of wood and clutching it tightly in my hand, I realize how incomplete I was without it. _Almost as if I was missing an arm, _I decide, twirling it between my fingers.

Suddenly I feel a hand on my shoulder and look up to see James gesturing towards the door. Sighing heavily and preparing myself for my untimely death, I nod my head and force my feet to walk across the room and open the door to step out into the hallway.

Turning around, I find James smiling reassuringly at me and I manage nothing but a grimace in response. Trying to ignore the snort of amusement from my boyfriend – _Ah…it feels good to finally be able to say it…uh…not as a lie, I mean – _I gather up some courage to shout, "Mum, I'm home."

Silence for a few moments. And then_–_

"LILY MARIE EVANS! COME DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT!"

_I wonder if I'll miss Petunia when I die…_

* * *

**To be continued…**

**AN – **I had homecoming at my school yesterday. And I sort of twisted my ankle from the heel. Ah…but it was worth it. I had an amazing time. Anyway, 25 chapters done! Hurray…! Tell me how you found this chapter guys. Thanks for all the reviews from last time by the way. And as usual, I want to thank everyone who has favorite/followed this story. Considering that this is my first one, I'm really really thankful for the support. Keep the reviews coming guys. Love you all.

Claudia.


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